



U \ ) 




UNITED STATES 



'V 



BiGGLE Horse Book 







A concise; and practicai. treatise on the horse, 

ORIGINAI. AND COMPILED. ADAPTED TO THE 

NEEDS OF FARMERS AND OTHERS WHO 

, HAVE A KINDI^Y REGARD FOR THIS 

NOBI,E SERVITOR OF MAN. / 

"A/zuays speak to a Horse as yoii would to a Gentleman. " 



II-L^WSTRKTEID 



PHILADELPHIA 

WILMER ATKINSON COMPANY 

1894 



5 



Copyright, 1894, 
By Wilmer Atkinson Company. 



PREFACE. 



The Author has not much to say by way of Preface. A 
portion of the raaterial contained herein has been contributed 
by practical Horsemen and Veterinarians of the highest 
standing in the United ^States. It contains much of the 
kindly wisdom of John Tucker and the gentle thought of 
Harriet Biggie as they have been displayed in the pages of 
the Farm Jotirnal. Much space has been given to the 
humane Training of the Horse, to his proper Housing and 
Feeding, to the Care of his Feet, and to the Education of the 
Colt. The Author is fully conscious of the incompleteness 
of the work, of its imperfections and omissions ; but he has 
done the best he could in the space allotted, and hopes his 
book will be of permanent value to all into whose possession 
it may come. 

JACOB BIGGLE. 

Elmwood Farm. 



INVOCATION. 



When cold and wet, please rub me dry, 
And do not beat me when 1 shy; 
Give twice a week a hot bran mash, 
With corn and oats, and salt, a dash ; 
Ten pounds each day of hay that's free 
From dust, all you should give to me ; 
Feed twice a week, instead of oats, 
A pair of carrots, 'twill shine my coat ; 
When hot, don't give me drink or grain ; 
When cold, don't stand me iii the rain ; 
Batten my stable warm and tight. 
And see that it's kept clean' and light. 
In winter, blanket close and bed me deep, 
And you'll find I'll pay you for my keep. 




ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 



The Author would gratefully recognize the important aid 
rendered in the preparation of this work, by the writings of 
Doctors Salmon, Michener, Harbaugh, Trumbower, Law, 
Liautard and Holcomb, Veterinarians of the highest ability 
in America, and to Mr. Hollister Sage, of Connecticut, who 
contributed much useful data, and to the Pennsylvania 
Engraving Co., and James M. Bryant, Illustrators and En- 
gravers, of Philadelphia. 











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CONTENTS. 



Preface 5 

Invocation 6 

Acknowledgment 6 

History ii 

Horse Maxims 13 

CHAPTER I. — THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

Cleveland Bay — Yorkshire Bay — French Coach — The 
Morgan — The Hackney — Horse for Draught ; for the 
Farm — The Good Mule — Shetland Pony 15 

"■ CHAPTER II. — FEEDING AND WATERING. 

Observations on Feeding — Rules for Watering — Salting 
— Feeding Conveniences and Watering Tank and 
Trough — General Notes 31 

CHAPTER III. IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 

The Stable Should Be Light, Clean and Free from 
Bad Odors ; the Floor Even — Grooming — Bedding 
— Conveniences — The Good Teamster — Overloading 
— Trotting Down Hill 40 

CHAPTER IV.— WHIMS and vices. 
Managing the Balky Horse — Tail Rubbing — Kicking 
— The Puller — Pawing — Rolling in the Stable — 
Tearing the Blanket 50 

CHAPTER v.— harness hints. 
Halters — The Collar — Blinders — In Fly-time — Triple 
Reins — Leading a Broncho — A Harness Closet — 
What Harriet Says 53 

CHAPTER VI. — AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 

Most Ailments Come from Improper Feeding and 
Watering — Importance of Having a Good Teamster 
— Worms — Indigestion — Colic — Sore Shoulder — 
Choking Distemper — Heaves — Dysentery .... 58 



lO CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VII. — AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 

Glanders — Gorged Stomach — Lockjaw — Choking — 
Hooks — Lice — Knuckling — Ring Bone — Spavin — 
Scratches — Itching Skin — Overdriven Pace .... 63 

CHAPTER VIII.— DOCTORING. 

Giving Medicine — Medicine Ball — Injections — Physic 

— Condition Powders — Ending a Horse's Life ... 70 
Mare Maxims 74 

CHAPTER IX.— MARE AND COLT, 

Have an Aim in Breeding — Breeding Farm Horses — 
The Foal — Feeding the Colt — General Observations 75 

CHAPTER X. — THE colt's education. 

It Should Begin Early — Some Methods — Gentleness 
Necessary — Tying Securely — Forming Good Habits 
— In General 83 

Colt Philosophy 89 

CHAPTER XL— the foot. 
Description — The Barefooted Horse — Some Ailments 

of the Foot ; Flow Caused and Cured 90 

Horse Maxims 96 

CHAPTER XII.— shoeing. 

Proper Treatment of the Feet in Shoeing — Mistakes 
Pointed Out — Fitting the Shoe to the Foot — Con- 
tracted Feet-^Interfering and Striking — Frequent 
Shoeing Necessary. 97 

Miscellaneous Maxims 103 

CHAPTER XIIL— A word from Harriet. 

Making the Horse Happy — A Cheerful Animal the Most 
Useful — Importance of Gentleness — The Horse's 
Good Qualities Pointed Out — The Docked Horse. . 105 

Colt Philosophy iio 

tH AFTER XIV.— age of a horse. 
How to Tell the Age of a Horse by His Teeth — The 
Age in Verse , iii 

CHAPTER XV. — some good books for horsemen. 116 
Index 119 



HISTORY. 



In all authentic history of the human race, we find the 
horse mentioned as the servant and companion of man. 

When the horse was first domesticated is not known, nor 
do we know of what country he is a native. Central Asia, 
Arabia and Central Africa each claims this honor, and we 
will not dispute the claims of either. 

In the time of Moses, horses were used in Egypt ; and 
later on, Solomon kept and used large numbers of them. 
From Job's vivid description it is evident that they were 
used and well bred in the countries farther east. Horses are 
represented in the carvings on the ruins of ancient Ninevah 
and in the marble friezes of the Greek Parthenon. \\Tien 
the Romans invaded Britain, they found the natives using 
horses of superior quality, and took some of them back to 
Rome. 

It is supposed that the Spaniards brought horses to South 
America as early as 1535, and that soon afterwards others 
were shipped to Paraguay. From these importations, it is 
thought there resulted the coimtless herds that have since 
spread over South America, and, passing the Isthmus of 
Panama, wandered into Mexico and California. In like 
manner, Evuopean settlers carried this noble animal to 
Australia, where, as in America, he has multiplied to a 
prodigious extent. He has, indeed, been diffused by the 
agency of man throughout the whole inhabited globe. 




REFERENCE 

0. Poll or nape of the neck. 

1. Neck. 

I^. Jugular gutter, 

2. Withers. 

3. Back. 

4. Loins. 

5. Croup. 

6. Tail. 

7. Parotid region. 

8. Throat. 

9. Shoulder. 

10. Point of the shoulder. 

11. Arm. 

12. Elbow. 

13. Forearm. 

14. Chestnut. 

15. Knee. 

16. Canon. 

17. Fetlock. 

18. Pastern. 

19. Coronet. 



CHART. 

20. Foot. 

21. Xiphoid region. 

22. Ribs. 

23. Abdomen. 

24. Flank, 

25. Sheath. 

26. Testicles. 

27. Buttock. 

27 bis. Angle of buttock. 

28. Thigh. 

28 bis. Haunch. 

29. Stifle. 

30. Leg. 

31. Hock. 

32. Chestnut. 
2)2)- Canon. 

34. Fetlock. 

35. Pastern. 

36. Coronet. 

37. Foot. 



HORSE MAXIMS. 



John Tucker says : 

Proper food and lots of sentiment ivill make with good 
blood a good horse. 

The brush -will save oats. 

There is a great deal of saving i7i a walk. 

It is all right to feed the horse hay only tzuice a day 
and the most at night. 

Find some tvay of keeping the horses busy all winter. 
Thtis only will they keep sound and be ready for hard 
spring work when it comes. 

It is expensive to 7oarm ice-zvater inside the stock. 

Horses cat dii't and gnazo their mangers from habit and 
because they want to. 

Ask the horses if they can'' t help out the hay mow by 
eating the straw sprinkled zvitJi bran. 

If you mtist ptit frosty bits in some mouths, let it be 
your own. Stifferirig begets sympathy. 



14 HORSE MAXIMS. 

Harriet Biggle says : 

There are oats ut the currycojiib. 

There is more profit in coaxing than in kicks. 

Do not push the plozv team the first zveek or you may 
get behind. 

If they throw up their heads and act titnidly look after 
your st'ableinan. Such acts speak lotider than words. 

Carry the bridles zvith you to the house when yozi go to 
breakfast and ptit the bits near the stove while yoti eat. 
Be gentle, be kind, be patient. 
Always speak to a horse as yeu would to a gentleman. 

A horse can travel safer and better with his head hang- 
ing dozun or free than it can when it is checked up. By 
all means, let your horse have its head. 

The three greatest enemies of the horse a7-e idleness, fat 
and a dumb blacksmith. 

Did you ever think of it? The whip is the parent of 
stubbornness. It is sure to be found somewhere in the pedi- 
gree of evejy balky horse. In training a young horse, 
use as intelligent brain instead of a crziel whip. 

Many a horse stands up all night because its stall is not 
made comfortable to lie down in. 

You cannot whip terror out of a horse or potind courage 
into one. Kindness and reasonable persuasion are the best 
weapons to use in training and educating a horse. If he 
.shies or frightens, soothe and encourage him, rather than 
beat and abuse him. 

Give to me nutritious food ; 
Give me vi^ater pure and good ; 
When the chilling winds do blow, 
Over me a blanket throw ; 
Shield me from all cruelty ; 
When I'm old be kind to me. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

Cleveland Bay — Yorkshire Bay — French Coach — The Mor- 
gan — The Hackney — Horse for Draught ; for the Farm — 
The Good Mule— Shetland Pony. 

Realizing that lack of space forbids a description of every 
breed and type of horse known, it is our aim to describe 
only a few horses that fad and fashion," which usually mean 
practical utility, have brought to the front of modern popu- 
larity. 

THE CLEVELAND BAY 

constituted a well-established breed in the Cleveland district, 
Yorkshire, Eng., as long ago as 1 740. It was named 
from the location and his invariable color, ranging from 
light to very dark bay. For at least 150 years the Cleveland 
Bay has been renowned as deep enough in breeding to insure 
transmission of his popular and solid constitution and bay 
color, and has been considered the best general -purpose 
horse 'bred in England. During that time a few farmers 
kept the blood of the Cleveland Bay pure, and refused to 
mix it with other horses of the district. Some of the long- 
time farm leases of Yorkshire provide that the favorite 
Cleveland Bay mare and her progeny should be bred pure 
on that farm during the term of the lease, and this has pre- 
served the breed in all its renowned essentials. Such 
breeders now show with pride their records of breeding, of 
prizes won, and of profits for their favorite breed. Thirty 
years ago a few breeders thus owned most of the mares that 
had been bred pure, when a sudden demand sprung up for 



i6 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 



horses with level heads, good constitution, large bone and 
endurance, and drew attention to this breed. Then its 
friends were rewarded by large prices for their horses. 
From that time they have been most carefully bred. They 
are especially desirable for family teams because of their fine 
style and action, level heads and good disposition. The 




CLEVELAND BAY FILLY. 



farmer trusts his hired men with them in the field because 
they are adjustable, and sends the women to market with 
them and to church in good style without fear of fractious 
conduct or a runaway. They are intelligent, sensible, good 
roadsters and stylish. For this reason they arfe unexcelled 
as teams for wealthy city men who are willing and able to 
pay a good price. The cut represents the two-year-old filly 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. I7 

owned by The Cleveland Bay Horse Company, of Paw Paw, 
Mich. She is a fair specimen of a beautiful breed. 

THE YORKSHIRE BAY. 

Among the finest carriage horses in the world is the high- 
class Yorkshire Bay, combining as he does the quality and 
grace of the thoroughbred with the strength, color and beauty 
of form of the Cleveland. He is an ideal of all that is mag- 
nificent and useful in the carriage horse. His color is a rich, 
shining bay, his coat is as bright and fine and as glossy and 
as iridescent as that of the race horse ; his legs, mane and 
tail are raven black, setting off the splendor of his golden 
color. He is strong and lengthy ; he stands over a great 
deal of ground; his top has the flowing lines of the Cleve- 
land back and level quarter ; his ribs are well sprung ; he 
carries his neat head and arched crest as well as his high-set 
tail with all the pride and grace of an Arab, and no bearing- 
rein is needed to make him bend. At rest and in action he 
is a golden picture of stateliness. There may be other 
breeds that lift the knee higher, but the movement of the 
Yorkshire Bay is fine and free ; it is not a mere snapping of 
the knee and flexing of the hocks, but he moves smoothly, 
evenly and with liberty from the shoulders and thighs ; step- 
ping lightly and airily, yet with a long reach, he covers the 
ground swiftly and with ease. 

The Yorkshire Bay is a created type ; its home is the 
north and east ridings of Yorkshire. It has been formed by 
selection and crossing the Cleveland directly or indirectly 
with the thoroughbred. 

THE FRENCH COACH 

horses are a combination of power, endurance and ele- 
gance that represents the outcome of centuries of government 
protection, and the careful breeding of the best horses ob- 



1 8 THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

tainable, controlled by the best minds trained for the purpose 
and supported by unlimited means. No other civilized na- 
tion has ever taken the uninterrupted interest in the improve- 
ment of the equine race that France has evinced. As early 
as the Feudal Ages her stock of horses had a far-reaching 
fame, due to the individual necessity of the knight. As the 
government became more centralized, the powers of state 
became responsible for the production of a higher class of 
horses for military protection and equipment. As early as 
1690 statistics prove France to have had 1,600 horses in her 
federal studs, A century later this number had increased 
to 3,239 stalhons that sired 55,000 living colts. From 1815 
to 1833 France bought 1,902 stallions for public service, and 
of these 223 came from Arabia and other foreign countries. 
The remainder were selections principally within her own 
borders. In 1 833 a royal stud-book was established, and 
since then the improvement in horses has been greater than 
ever. The government has kept one central object con- 
stantly in view, to encourage the people by every possible 
means to a higher standard of breeding, and at the same 
time to furnish them the means by which to accomplish this 
purpose, by introducing in every locality the finest of the 
different breeds and types, which are offered for service to 
owners of choice mares at nominal fees. The animals men- 
tioned are not all owned by the government, but many are 
owned by individuals, and having been inspected and ap- 
proved by the authorized officials, are employed at 300 to 3,000 
francs per annum, and others still, though not salaried, are 
recommended governmentally as worthy of public patronage. 
To prevent the use of inferior stock, all horses not authorized 
by government are excluded from service. Besides this, 
large sums are annually expended as prizes for choice colts 
reared under governmental auspices. 



20 THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

Gemare, the horse shown, is a stallion belonging to J. S. 
Sanborn, of Elmwood Stock Farm, Lewiston Junction, Me. 
Eight half brothers of this horse are owned by the French 
Government and stand in the national haras, and seventy- 
eight of his half brothers and sisters have been winners in 
the annual races of France. He is bay, sixteen hands, and 
weighs 1,250 pounds. His sire is the government stallion 
Phaeton, dam Esperence. 

THE MORGAN. 

The Morgan is termed by many the "American Hack- 
ney." He is known as a stayer. The ambition among old 
Norfolk trotter enthusiasts was 
not to go a mile in two minutes, 
but an unlimited distance in a 
limited time. The aim was 100 
miles in ten hours to saddle, and 
the Morgan has the ability. Cir- 
cumstances of locality have influ- 
^ .»^«..T«-a>™«™«^ — «,™ , enced this breed for such a purpose 

THE MORGAN HORSE. "lore than any other class of 
horses. The hills of New Eng- 
land prevent stretches of speed and encourage staying powers 
against adverse conditions. The old Morgan appears 
to have had size and contour similar to the old Norfolk, 
with greater substance. For long, steady, untiring work, 
the Morgan will unquestionably come to the front again iii 
popularity. 

The history of the breed dates back to the foaling of 
Justin Morgan in 1793. This horse was taken from his 
home at Springfield, Mass. , when two years old, to Vermont. 
His breeding is believed to be as follows : Sire True Briton, 
by Morton's Traveler, by Croft's Partner, by Jigg, by Byerly 




THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 21 

Turk, whose dam was by Curwen's Bay Barb. Justin Mor- 
gan is conceded to have much Arabian blood in him. He 
was dark bay, fourteen hands and 950 pounds. His walk 
was rapid and trot a smooth stride, and he was noted for 
courage, untiring action and beauty. He left six entire sons, 
Hawkins, Sherman, Bulrush, Fenton, Revenge and Wood- 
bury. Sherman, Bulrush and Woodbury left stock that has 
made them famous. From the first came the Blackhawks, 
Ethan Aliens, Lamberts, Knoxes and Herods ; from Bul- 
rush the MoiTils and Fearnaughts, and from Woodbury the 
Golddusts and Magna Chartas. Each of these families 
now has numerous members in the 2.30 list. The Morgan 
is a trotting roadster, only that instead of turning off a fast 
mile he rapidly covers many miles with ease. His animation 
and eagerness make him a general favorite, whether for 
pleasm-e or business. The Morgans are a long-lived race. 
Justin died at 29, Sherman and Gifford at 26, Revenge at 22, 
Bulrush at 35, Billy Root at 23 and Royal at 37. Their 
prepotency for 100 years has been remarkable. The engrav- 
ing is of Sultan, a perfect Morgan owned and bred by The 
Morgan Horse Company, of Carpentersville, 111. 



THE HACKNEY. 

Many persons make the mistake of believing every com- 
pactly built horse a Hackney, when in truth this animal is a 
distinctly English-bred trotter of exact type and antiquity of 
origin, dating, his lovers say, as far back in English litera- 
ture as 1 1 70. A Hackney should be bred for quality as 
much as possible, and he must have bone and muscle enough 
to do the work required of him. The demand is for power 
enough to draw four persons ten to twelve miles per hour 
without trouble. ' The Hackney has made some remarkable 



22 THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

records as a trotter, and is by no means devoid of track 
qualifications. 

THE DRAUGHT HORSE. 

Few men who buy horses will ask whether they are Nor- 
man, Clyde, Belgian, Percheron or Suffolk. They only seek 




large, handsome, good horses, reasonably sound, with free 
action, and will pay good money and be glad to get them. 
They are all grand horses, and, except for the heavily 
haired leg -or clean leg, no man can tell one from another. 
All are most valuable and come from one source. They have 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 



23 



become what we see them by dimatic influence, feed and 
environment. We must have weight to suit the city markets. 
A proud-stepping, vigorous, powerful Draught Horse, with 
beautiful form, is eagerly demanded by commerce. Only 
high-class mares and the best Draught sires can produce such 
horses. Too many small chunks are bred. They fail to 
bring Draught Horse prices, and their breeders then pro- 
nounce Draught Horse 
breeding a failure. 

A requisite for the 
farmer's horse is early 
maturity, or size and 
strength to perform much 
of the farmer' s necessary 
work while growing or 
being fitted for market, 
and this without break- 
ing down or being in- 
jured in any way by 
such work. 

He should be of 
medium size, evenly proportioned with flat limbs power- 
fully jointed, but not coarse. Bays, browns and chestnuts 
are the favorite colors. 

Select animals with a swinging road gait that will draw 
two men a mile in four minutes or ten miles an hour, a 
horse that can go fifty to sixty miles in a day without feel- 
ing it. The action should be courageous and free, and he 
should have bottom enough to repeat the performance as 
frequently as one may desire. It is not difficult to get a high 
price for such horses. The man who has any Hackneys, 
French Coachers, or Cleveland Bays is not far out of 
the way. 




HEAD OF DRAUGHT HORSE. 



24 THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 

There is no brighter possibility for the farmer than in breed- 
ing large, young native mares of amiable disposition to full- 
blood stallions, thus obtaining half-blood grades at slight 
cost. Such animals are as good for all practical purposes as 
if full-bloods and sell as well for all purposes except 
breeding. 







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CLYDESDALE. 





Why does not some enterprising breeder make a specialty 
of intelligence in horses, as has been done in the case of the 
dog with marvelous results ? There would be money in the 
thing. 

Let the breeder of horses school himself to sell his stock 
for just what it is. He will quickly make a good name for 
himself, and be able to get for his really good horses enough 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 2$ 

to more than recompense what he loses in telling the truth 
about the poorer ones. 

A good riding horse should have a long neck and carry its 
head high. The rider wants to see some horse ahead of him. 

The pony ate the parson — 

How came that to pass ? 
The pony heard the parson say^ 

' ' Alljlesh is grass. " 

THE GOOD MULE. 
"It is a poor mule that won't work both ways." 

Having made a business of rearing mules for market, I 
have learned many things concerning the breeding and use- 
fulness of this animal that those persons should have who 
are convinced he is a vicious and untrustworthy brute. 

To breed anything like the ideal mule, greater care must 
be exercised in the selection of sire and dam than is neces- 
sary in producing a model horse. How many ill-shaped, 
ugly mules we see, each the result of careless breeding ! I 
have been taught by obsei^^ation that more depends upon the 
sire than upon the dam in getting an ideal mule foal. Good 
points, however, come readily from both sides. Some men, 
in selecting a Jack, look to his height, and, for such, the 
more daylight found under him the better. What foolish 
men ! The Jack must be low and heavily quartered, with 
large bone and a neat head. This sire will bring good 
mules nearly every time. Some men who own curby, heavy 
crooked mares say, '* They'll do to raise mules." This 
carelessness, coupled with ignorance, accounts for the great 
number of degenerated hybrids. 

A mule possesses keener instinct than a horse, and for this 
reason is easily trained. He should be handled from the 
very beginning of his life. A small leather halter should 



26 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 



be worn about the stable for the purpose of holding him 
while being patted and rubbed about the head. This kind 
treatment will win respect for the owner of the most stubborn 
little hybrid for all future time. I have never found an ex- 




ception to this rule. I have found, however, that by tickling 
and teasing, it is easy to get an all-round kicker. The 
young mule should be bitted when rising in his second year 
and harnessed to light work. I have never seen a mule that 
I could not train to be good and gentle by handling him 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 27 

firmly, but easily and quietly. A good, tough mule will 
usually show it when a stranger approaches him. He will 
be shy. This shyness is his staple virtue and means snap. 
What is the mule best adapted to ? and what is he not 
adapted to ? I use mules only on my farm and have no 
horses. The mule is harnessed for all purposes, from 
plowing in new ground to attending funerals — both solemn 
occasions. He has a swinging gait, peculiar to himself, that 
makes him a speedy animal for such farm work as mowing 
and raking, cultivating and reaping. He is especially well 
adapted to the coach, being sufficiently speedy and exceed- 
ingly plucky and handsome enough for any king to sit 
behind. General George Washington, much noted for 
keeping handsome horses, was also an extensive raiser of 
mules. Among the hills of Pennsylvania, where lumbering 
and mining is so extensively carried on, the mule is king of 
the collar. In this county (Westmoreland) the mule market 
is always good. I am happy to say the tariff never affects 
our mule market very much. Among the mountains of 
Western Pennsylvania the mule is an indispensable beast, as 
much as on the cotton and tobacco plantations and in the 
cane brakes of the sunny South. 

John A. Brant. 

RuFUS Mason says : To a young man cotirting a girl 
whom he suspects is not qtiite as sensible as she ought to be, 
he can go on horseback ; but the day after the wedding, 
trade off the horses and get a first-rate mule team. She 
won't dress so fine to ride behind mtdes ; and, seeiitg that . 
the mules are sensible and businesslike, she will have a 
good example before her. 

SHETLAND PONY. 

The Shetland ponies are from thirty-four to forty-four 
inches high. They are very hardy and strong, with long 



28 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 



manes and tails. These are a protection to them in the cold 
climate in which they are reared. They have long and 
shaggy coats. After being in America a few years, their 
coats become finer. The Shetland Islands, where they come 
from, are north of Scotland. The pasture is scanty and the 
climate severe. This is why they have become so small. 
They will carry a full-grown man, but the trouble is to find a 




good place for the rider's feet. But they are just adapted to 
the boy and girl. 

A child will get more fun, physical development and 
ruddy health to the square inch with a pony than in any 
other way. The child who has a pony should be taught to 
care for it. In this way the little boy or girl can take in 
horse sense, and this knowledge of how to do things will be 
of great benefit to them. The pony will think more of them 
and they will think more of the pony. There is now a 



THE DIFFERENT BREEDS. 29 

great demand for ponies, and there will be more as people 
find out how much good it is for the children to own them. 

The picture represents Sparkle, a beautiful specimen 
owned by J. jSIurray Hoag, of Maquoketa, Iowa, who im- 
ports large numbers of them. 



30 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 





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V 


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A ■" ' \\? 




/ \\ // ] 1 


.Mm^mm- 



SHOWING DIGESTIVE APPARATUS,* 



I. Mouth. 


10. Caecum. 


2. Pharynx. 


II. Small intestine. 


3. CEsophagus. 


12. Floating colon. 


4. Diaphragm. 


13. Rectum. 


5. Spleen. 


14. Anus. 


6. Stomach. 


15. Left kidney and its ureter 


7. Duodenum. 


16. Bladder. 


8. Liver, upper extremity. 


17. Urethra. 


9. Large colon. 





* Haines, after Megnin. From Prof. Michener iu U. S. Gov. 
Report on Diseases of Animals. 



CHAPTER II. 

FEEDING AND WATERING. 

Observations on Feeding-^Rules for Watering — Salting — 
Feeding Conveniences and Watering Tank and Trough — 
General Notes. 

Of food and drink give me the best. 
From brtital treattnent keep me free ; 

Give me when tired a little rest, 
And see how tisefid I can be. 

A horse has a smaller stomach than an ox and conse- 
quently it must be fed less at a time. It has less power to 
digest coarse foods. It eats much slower, as it must do all 
its chewing before the food is swallowed. For these reasons 
it requires a longer time to eat and its food should be more 
concentrated. It wants only a little coarse food at a time. 

Most people feed too much rather than too little. Two 
pounds per day of hay and grain for each loo pounds of live 
weight, is usually enough for good working condition. A 
general all-round good ration for any horse consists of six 
parts bran, three of oats and one of linseed-oil meal. It is a 
grand combination for muscle, for work and for health. In 
cold weather corn should be added, and the cornmeal, oats 
and bran may ba of equal weight, still adding a little linseed 
meal. Feed a small amount of hay twice a day. 

There is no doubt that farmers generally depend too much 
on corn to feed their work horses. Corn is good to lay on 
fat, but muscle is what a work horse needs, to give which 



32 FEEDING AND WATERING. 

oats are a much better feed. However plentiful corn may 
be, it should be fed sparingly. Lay on as much muscle as 
you please, the more the better, but a horse overburdened 
with fat is unable to stand as much hard work as one whose 
muscles are better developed. 

Great care and regularity should be given to watering and 
feeding. The water should in summer be clean, fresh and 
cool, and in the winter should be free from ice. Every 
horse ■ should have cut hay, straw, corn-fodder, or wheat 
chaff, wetted and mixed with bran, at least once a day the 
year round. In the hot weather a horse should not be fed 
much com. Bran and oats are much better. The more 
work the more feed, of course. 

The practice of feeding the horse when tired and thirsty 
is altogether too common, and then too with the extra thirst 
of a full meal allow it to gorge itself with water. When 
this is done the horse should remain quiet for a full hour 
before starting on the road or at hard work to get space for 
its lungs to play and its heart to beat, by the digestion of the 
food and its removal to the bowels. 

Did you ever get in your mouth or on your plate some 
potato that had soured in the hot weather? If so, you know 
something of the misery a horse must suffer when compelled 
to take all his food from a sour manger. Cut food, moist- 
ened, is very likely to sour the manger. The good horseman 
will always bend over it when tying his charges. Sourness 
is easily detected and easily cured by a pail of scalding 
water. A pinch of charcoal dust thrown in the manger 
daily will help keep things sweet and prevent acidity in the 
horse's stomach. 

If the horse eats lots of grain and does not do well, it 
must have sore teeth or a poor digestion. It is an easy thing 
to have the teeth smoothed so it can eat well. If the trouble 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 33 

is in the stomach, feed less grain. Too much grain will often 
make a disordered stomach, and the animal will do better on 
less. 

The breath of a horse or any other animal upon its food is 
unwholesome. For this reason put into the manger only food 
enough for one meal. 

jMeal is not a natural food for a horse which can chew 
well. They eat it too fast and it does not get enough saliva 
with it to digest well. The saliva is the first secretion in the 
process of digestion and it must do its part to have the food 
agree fully with the animal. 

Green forage crops must be fed with discretion and not 
largely at first, or the result will be profuse sweating, result- 
ing in weakness, and sometimes colic. It is never safe to 
turn horses with strong, unsatisfied appetites for green crops 
loose in the rank growth. 

Every barn should have a bran bin which should be re- 
plenished annually at the time when bran is low in price. Its 
cost per ton is usually as low or lower than that of the best 
hay. Bran should be fed liberally when the old coat is 
shedding, and each horse should be treated to a daily ration 
in summer. Its tendency is laxative, keeping the entire 
system cool, and its effect upon the skin excellent, prevent- 
ing surface irritation common among animals fed largely 
upon corn. Four quarts of bran with a pint to a quart of oil 
meal lightly salted will appeal keenly to the horse's taste. 

Potatoes are an excellent food for horses during the 
winter, in connection with other food, keeping their bowels 
open and their skins loose. 

There is nothing better than sweet apples to help put a 
horse in fine condition. Give them four quarts at a mess 
three times a day with the grain. Few people realize the 
value of sweet apples as a relish for horses. 



34 FEEDING AND WATERING. 

One of the most useful foods whether green or hayed is 
oats and peas. The crop is easily raised in large quantities on 
rich land well prepared, where one-half bushel of peas are 
sown with two and one-halfbushelsof oats per acre. As soon 
as the peas are in full bloom the fodder is ready for use, and 
all should be cut for feeding or drying before the peas are 
ripe. If it should happen to be dull weather and the crop 
matures, no harm has been done, because it can be cured, 
run through the threshing machine and straw cutter, moist- 
ened, and the ground oats and peas sprinkled over it. 

Experienced horsemen understand that with a heavy feed 
of oats, at night, and a light breakfast, a horse gets a 
reserved stock of muscular strength laid in in advance, and 
travels faster and further than one having a hearty morning 
feed. 

A warm bran mash does good occasionally. Don't let the 
bowels of any horse become constipated. 

A night pasture for work horses will help to cool their 
blood. Give them their grain ration just the same. 

There are a few horses whose stomachs will not tolerate 
rye in any form ; will either get colic or staggers. Rye is 
always a dangerous feed when given alone. 

Spasmodic salting is all wrong for any animal, and espe- 
cially for horses. It may cause colic, and often does. The 
horse eats too much salt at a time, if only salted now and 
then, and when this is the case the coats of the stomach and 
the bowels are irritated, and congestion takes place and ex- 
cessive thirst. The horse then drinks too much and a chill 
follows, and this makes more congestion and inflammation 
may follow, and colic and a set-back, if not death. What 
is the use of such doings ? It is just as easy, and easier, to 
be more sensible, and to keep salt before the horse all the 
time, and then it will partake as directed by its instincts, and 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 35 

only a lick will be eaten. Prepare the horse for the con- 
stant supply by giving it a little every day for a week, and 
then no harm will come. 

Teamsters should feed their own horses, and every team- 
ster who takes pride in his team should handle the measure 
himself, and should make appetite and digestion of food a 
subject of study. 

Horses refuse their feed because of overwork, too little 
exercise, or because the food is not right in some way, sore- 
ness of mouth or teeth, or general faulty management. If 
the trouble is due to overfeeding, short rations for a day or 
two will remedy it. Food that is not eaten within a reason- 
able time should be removed from the manger and the ration 
correspondingly reduced. No animal should have more 
than he will eat up clean. When a horse refuses to eat and 
becomes thin and weak for no apparent reason, he should 
have some condiment to increase the appetite. A good 
combination is the following : Ground oats and corn, of 
each five pounds ; oil meal, four ounces ; salt, two ounces ; 
a dessertspoonful of powdered gentian, and a small tea- 
spoonful of dried sulphate of iron. If the animal refuses 
the ration a little starvation will make him taste it, when his 
dislike will cease at once. Begin -with a small quantity of 
this mixture for each meal, and increase it gradually until a 
full ration is being fed. 

"Water your horse before you give him hay. Give him 
hay before you give him grain. Give the concentrated food 
last. His stomach is not large enough to hold all at once. 

The digestion of food is frequently badly retarded or pre- 
vented by mistakes in watering. Water should always be 
offered the horse twenty minutes before he is fed, and never 
less than two hours after feeding. The drink is rapidly 
taken from the stomach by the intestines, and the time men- 



36 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 



tioned is sufficient to distribute three or four gallons of water 
throughout the digestive tract, diluting the salivary secretion 
so as to supply all water needed for digestion of the food. 
When regular watering is practiced no water will be craved 
soon after food. To observe this method prevents the wash- 
ing of undigested food from the stomach into the intestines, 
where it ferments, producing gas and resulting in colic. 



(^ 



THE BARN TANK. 

There is no greater convenience in and about a horse barn 
than water obtainable instantly and at wholesale. Many 
persons are not situated where they 
can have pipe water at command, and 
will delight in arranging a tank in the 
upper part of the barn which may be 
kept full by the use of a hand or 
power pump. This tank should have 
an overflow pipe so that it will never 
■-py^yNj^^^xV be filled so full as to make trouble. 
It need not be anything more than a 
cask well hooped and painted. A lOO-gallon box lined 
with metal will answer better, perhaps, in quickly supply- 
ing drink for the horses, water for sponging their feet and 
legs, washing carriages, washing the floors and windows, 
etc. A hose is a great aid to the rapid washing of windows, 
and with a tank in the loft one is as independent of city 
water works as of Niagara. In connection with the water 
system every one should have a slatted platform an inch or 
two above the ground, where the wagons may be drawn for 
washing. Here the water and mud are instantly washed 
away, so that the hands and sponge are kept clean 
avoiding varnish scratching, and the feet are not kept in a 
puddle. 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 



31 




The most economical troughs are those made from plank. 
Use /m<f plank two inches thick. The plank must contain 
no knots or wind shakes, nor large cracks. The excellence 
of this sort of a trough especially depends upon the way in 
which it is made. Two drawings 
will show best and quickest the right 
and the wrong way. Letting one part 
into another makes the trough tighter, 
and if let in as shown in Fig. i, 
and not as shown in Fig. 2, the 
trough will be made much stronger 
PIG. I. and more durable. The bottom is 

let into the sides also. Smooth the 
edges to be let in. Lay them against the plank to be 
grooved, make a mark close to each edge, and then saw 
just a little inside of each mark, so the groove is a little 
narrower than the edge to be fitted in it. Saw a long quarter 
of an inch deep and then chip out the wood with a chisel, 
making the groove of the same depth throughout. Paint the 
groove and edge with thick paint — 
brown mineral paint is cheapest and 
best — before they are put together. 
As Fig. I does not show the end piece 
let into the bottom, the reader is safe 
in concluding that the better way is 
to let the end of the bottom into the 
end piece. The bolts should be of 
iron, one-half inch in diameter. With 

the grooves they will hold the trough well together, and no 
nails should be used. Such a trough is durable. Bore a 
hole in the bottom of every trough and fit it wuth a hard- 
wood plug. Then the water can be let out of freezing 
nights. If a stout tarred string is tied to the end of the 




FIG. 2. 



38 



FEEDING AND WATERING. 



plug and fastened to the top of the trough, the plug will 
not be lost, and one will not have sometimes to reach into 
cold water to pull out the plug. It pays to have plenty 
of good troughs about the farm. 

The horse that eats his grain too hastily is sure, sooner or 
later, to become a dyspeptic. Bolted food cannot be assim- 
ilated, and hence is worse than wasted, as it deranges and 
poisons the digestive organs. Some horses, whose stomachs 
are already out of order more or less, from the vice of 
too eager eating, will plunge their noses into the oats nearly 
to the eyes, fill their mouths and fairly crowd the food 
down their own throats. To prevent disease is always better 
than endeavors to cure it. Realizing 
this truth many a horse owner has tried 
in various ways to force a slow consump- 
tion of food in his stables. Some spread 
the oats in the bottom of a large manger; 
others keep a peck of small stones there, 
from between which the horse is com- 
pelled to pick his food. Good horsemen 
of New York state have widely adopted the slow delivery 
chute. It is built into the manger, as the cut shows, and 
reaches to within half an inch of its bottom. A metal 
manger should be used, or a wooden one lined with tin or 
iron, as a greedy horse will destroy it by gnawing because 
dissatisfied with rational eating. Colts brought up at such 
mangers will rarely become gourmands afterwards, and are 
doubly valuable because so seldom out of condition, with 
resultant colic, etc. 

It is a waste of time and increase of trouble to go into the 
loft whenever the horses are to be fed. It is convenient and 
economical to cut a week's supply of hay at one time, say 
during a shower or when a change of work is desired. 




FEEDING AND WATERING. 



39 



The hay is not thrown down haphazard to create a dust all 

through the bam and set the horses coughing, but is cut into 

a chute, made dust tight with putty. 

This is located under the stairs in 

one corner out of the way, and 

a slope bottom renders every ounce 

of the cut hay easily available. 

To prevent clogging and increase 

the storage capacity, the chute was 

built larger at the bottom than 

at the top. 




CHAPTER III. 

IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 

The Stable Should Be Light, Clean and Free from Bad 
Odors ; the Floor Even — Grooming — Bedding — Conven- 
iences — The Good Teamster — Overloading — Trotting 
Down Hill. 

Feed me 07i good oats and hay ^ 
Give me drink three tivies a day ; 
In the pasttire let me play, 
Groom me well, for it will pay. 

A good horseman cannot be too careful about his stable. 
It should be well ventilated, scrupulously clean, well drained, 

and have low mangers and 
a floor that never gets out 
of true from wearing by the 
shoes or settling of the 
"^S^^Sv^^V^^^^^^^x^^/^ building. There is no floor 
that is better than plank, 
all things considered, but 
it should not slope too 
much from front to rear, as is often the case. 

It is well to have the floor supplemented by a lower floor 
which has a more decided slope, the surface floor to consist 
of two to three-inch planks one-half to three-quarters of an 
inch apart, held in place by cleats or iron rods. This sur- 
face floor may be leveled up by resting on a thick cross- 
piece at the rear and a very thin one or none at all forward. 
The perfect stable floor should stop one foot or more short of 




IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 4I 

the manger, where the horse's fore feet come when he is 
feeding. This space should be filled with earth, wb'ch is 
beneficial in cooling the feet, keeping the frogs healthy, and 
which he will paw to a level he finds most restful. 

The sub-floor must have a decided slope and be cleaned 
often by raising the level surface floor and sifting dry earth 
through it. 

Another good floor is made of solid concrete, two inches 
higher forward than back. On this is a slat floor for the ani- 
mals to stand upon. The slats are four inches thick at the 
rear and only two inches thick forward, thus making the 
floor level. The planks cover the gutter, making the stable 
neat in every respect. 

The stable must be light or the eyes will be injured. The 
air must be pure or the lungs will be impaired. A foul 
stable will sicken the horses. The horse stables should be 
cleaned every day. Use plenty of plaster to absorb the 
ammonia, and see that the ventilation is good and that there 
are no draughts. 

It will certainly injure the horse's eyes to take it from a 
dark stable into the glare of sunlight reflected from snow. 
The injury may be slight, and it may be serious. If re- 
peated, it may make the horse blind. The remedy is a light 
stable. A light stable — made so by glass windows — is more 
healthy than a dark one. 

Sometimes slight settling of the barn will slope the stall 
floors toward the manger, or make them so level that urine 
will cause trouble. Besides rendering the horse more diffi- 
cult to keep clean, the ammonia generated 
will be a dangerous admixture in the air 
for the animal's lungS and eyes. 

Any person who has used a scraper like 
:he one shown in the engraving will never be without one. It 





42 IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 

is merely a 2 -foot board edged with hoop iron and fastened to 
a brace and handle. After thoroughly shaking up and re- 
moving the bedding no shovel will so quickly scrape out 
the stable. 

Soaked bedding it is necessary to dry each day, especially 
in village stables. There is nothing that will so quickly ac- 
complish the purpose as the 
frame and wheelbarrow shown. 
Bedding may be placed upon 
this two inches deep, wheeled 
into the sun and wind and 
dried in an hour, as the wind 
penetrates it from below as well 
as on all sides. All that is necessary is a sound wheel. 
Pieces of scantling firmly nailed together improvise the 
remainder of the contrivance. 

A good hook for the harness may be made of a piece of inch 
and a half oak plank three inches wide and eighteen inches 
long. Six inches from one end a hole should be bored by 
which it is screwed to the side of the post or other upright. 
Near the outer edge of this beam a cleat should be nailed, 
on which the oak stick may rest when turned down. A heavy 
nail driven over its rear end will also help steady it if the 
weight be heavy. Of course, the holder may be shaped as 
neatly as one desires. When not in use it may be turned 
up out of the way. 

Careful and thorough grooming is almost as essential as 
feeding and cannot be dispensed with profitably. Many who 
care for their own horses detest the work, but largely because 
they do not do it in the easiest way, which is the most sys- 
tematic. 

Procure a well-made, rice-root brush, and with this in one 
hand and a currycomb in the other, start the job at the horse's 



IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 43 

head on the near side. Never use the comb on head, mane 
nor tail. Carefully brush the left side of the head until it is 
clean and shiny. Then proceed to the neck, thence to the 
shoulders, using the comb now to loosen up the hair and 
dirt, and only advancing as the portion under consideration 
is thoroughly cleansed and beautified. Before touching the 
body scrape, brush, clean and smooth the left side of both 
forward legs. When all of this side has been well groomed 
down to the last hair of both hind feet, the tail must be 
carefully and persistently brushed. This done, proceed to 
the right side of the head and follow the formula given for 
the left side. If the head is difficult to groom satisfactorily, 
rub the hair the wrong way with the brush and then smooth 
it. This will soon conquer the worst case and do it agree- 
ably to the horse. 

Be gentle with the horses. Nervous excitement deranges 
the digestive organs. Worry the horse by voice or whip and 
he will be thin, no matter what you feed him. Even a 
horse appreciates a musical voice, with a kind intonation. 

In cleaning horses after coming in from work, or in the 
morning, if the floor back of your stalls is large enough to 
clean horses in, they should be cleaned there in preference 
to the stall. Put a screw-eye in the wall up as high as you 
can reach, tie a hitch rein with a snap to it ; right opposite 
to this, in the stall post, put another screw-eye or screw ring, 
lead your horse out and snap the hitch rein in the side 
ring of the halter, then tie the halter rein in the ring 
opposite. You can get around him without trouble, and 
if he should happen to be a biter, he can't get at you. 

After going over his body with currycomb, take a com- 
mon broom and brush all the dust off of him you can. It 
will take out lots of dust in a short time. If your comb is 
new and teeth sharp, rvm a file over them a few limes. 




44 IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 

After brushing, take a cloth and go over him from head to 
Tieel, pick out his feet with an article like this, 
called a foot hook (one side is a hook about an 
inch and a half long, the other chisel-shaped), 
and he is ready to go to his stall. Horse's feet 
should be examined every day. The second 
illustration is called a scraper, for taking off sweat 

or mud. It is made of hard wood 

Illllllllllliilll P^ about a foot long, one inch wide, 

sharp edges and slightly bent near 

the end. An old piece of grass matting is a good thing to 

take mud off the legs with. 

To dispose of your horse's foretop, if heavy, try parting 
in the middle before putting on the bridle. 

Fetlocks may catch and hold mud and ice and be harder 
to clean than clipped ankles, but certainly they keep off 
wind and prevent direct contact of ice with the skin ; there- 
fore, don't bare the ankles. If frozen in tags they may be 
cleaned and dried quickly by dipping in hot water and 
sawing with an old sack. It is easier and more speedy than 
Tubbing. The heat produced will leave the fetlocks dry. 

The old feed bag, too full of holes to be worth mending, 
is good for nothing, eh ? Saw the wet and muddy legs of 
the tired horse with it, and see how dry and clean they will 
become. The labor isn't great, but the results are. 

No brush will take the dust out of a horse's coat and 
make it glisten like a stiff broom in the hands of a strong, 
■energetic man. Its handle must be cut off to two feet. It 
seems to afford sufficient leverage so considerable power 
may be brought to bear on the coat. 

During the shedding season, use only an old and dull 
currycomb. A sharp one will inflict pain, a thing the 
humane person will avoid. 



IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 45 

There is nothing so sweet, clean, and economical for the 
horse's bed as sawdust, where straw is too expensive. Tan 
bark and sawdust mixed also make a good bed. 

Never tie a horse so long that he can put his head on the 
floor. If he can put his head down he is likely to roll and 
get cast. 

To get horses from a burning barn or stable, when panic- 
stricken, put the harness on them and they can then be 
easily and safely removed. If no harness is at hand one's 
coat or blanket thrown over his head makes him tractable. 

The way to hang the lantern in the stable is to stretch a 
wire tight overhead far enough behind the horses to be out 
of the way, and to attach a hook to this wire on which the 
lantern is hung — and have the hook so loose that it will slide 
along easily. When this is done, the lantern will not be 
upset, and danger from fire will be lessened. 

Do not get it into your head that a man can work a team 
and take the right kind of care of them, or anywhere near 
it, and do a lot of chores, say milk nine or ten cows, feed 
and water fifteen or twenty hogs, cut all the wood, etc. , and 
whoever expects it is very apt to be disappointed. That is, 
when the team is doing hard work every day that is usual oa 
a farm in the busy season. 



Spare me tip and spare nie down. 
But spare me not on level ground. 



46 



IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 



The intelligent reader will not be slow to catch on to the 
idea of the illustration herewith. The horse or colt that is 
accustomed to getting cast in the stall can be prevented from 




doing so by the use of a strap fastened to a joist overhead, 
so that the animal cannot get its head quite down to the floor. 
This device is necessary in some cases, and is effective. 



IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 



47 



There is a great difiference in methods of managing horses 
to get from them the best and longest service. Some 
men invariably drive rap- 
idly, regardless of the 
condition of roads ; others 
not only drive with con- 
sideration, but continually 
guide the team so that the 
wagon will avoid all stones 
and heavy ruts, making it 
a constant endeavor to 
husband the resources of 
the horses. Rapid, careless and often inhuman driving will 
wear out the best pair of horses in one -half the time they will 
serve efficiently and profitably in the hands of a rational man. 

Better go twice than to overload the team. This over- 
loading is a most frightful cause of unsoimdness. When 
loaded, stop often. It pays. 




HORSE AT WORK. 




There are lots of fools who drive horses, and one of the 
biggest is the one who makes the horse trot down hill. It 
hurts the horse, as it jars the shoulders, . and may bring 
paralysis of the muscles and nerves and to cause sweeny, or 
shoulder soreness. It also weakens the tendons and 



48 IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 

"springs" the knees, and then the animal cannot stand 
erect on its fore feet or hold back down hill. There is 
always more danger in going fast down hill if anything gives 
away. A horse should always be taught to go carefully 
down hill, and not pellmell. 

Make haste slowly for the first mile or two when starting 
out for a drive. Try it, and see how much easier and more 
satisfactorily your horse will accomplish whatever is re- 
quired of him. 

Do the horses seem to sweat easily at their work in the 
spring ? They are not hard yet. Be easy with them for a 
few days. As Pat says: "Be aisy; and if ye can't be 
aisy, be as aisy as ye can." 

Don't let the colts and young horses get discouraged with 
heavy loads. Better go a few more times, or hire in a day's 
work, than to spoil a promising team. 

When your horse is heated from riding or driving do not 
let him stand in a draught, and, if very warm, rub him briskly 
all over with a coarse towel or wisp of straw and cover him 
with a light blanket, which will absorb the perspiration and 
prevent a chilling of the surface. 

Never whip a horse when he is frightened. Be cool your- 
self and he will soon gain confidence. 

The nippy air of winter makes the horses frisky. After 
the confinement of the stable they want to go. If a rein 
should break their going might be serious. Perhaps the 
sewing of some of the splices has begun to give way. Bet- 
ter see about it. 

Bring the horse up to the hitching post with his head from 
the wind. He will not get so cold as if his head is toward 
the wind, and he will stand better. The horse will stand 
more quietly while you are hitching him if his head is from 
the wind. 



IN THE STABLE AND AT WORK. 49 



HORSE MAXIMS. 

Tim says : 

The nervous ho7'se should have less oats and more bran. 

The collar uuisi not be too wide nor too short. 

It does a horse a wonderful amozint of good to rtib its legs 
a few minutes after a hard drive, ivith a zvoolen doth. 

Give the horses a few potatoes in their feed occasionally. 
They are good for horses and bad for wor?jzs. 

The blanket is for outside the stable, not in it. If the 
horse in the stable is so cold as to need 
a blanket, he should be given a better 
stable, and not a blanket. When a 
horse has free access to salt it seldom 
has colic and very rarely is troubled 
with bots. 

Cultivate a cheery way of speak- 
ing to your horse. Some horses that are cross and lazy, be- 
cause groioled at and piutched in the ribs tintil sour and 
discouraged, will prick forward their ears and follozu them 
in a hearty, glad manner that is surprising when they are 
kindly and encotiragingly urged. 

If a horse eats his bedding tise sawdust or fine tan bark. 

Don't draw your hauies too close at the top ; better have 
them zijide so as not to pinch the horse' s neck. 




CHAPTER IV. 

WHIMS AND VICES. 

Managing the Balky Horse — Tail-rubbing — Kicking — The 
Puller — Pawing — Rolling in the Stable — Tearing the 
Blanket. 

For a balky horse the only persuaders that should be 
allowed are the spade and post. They should be carried in 
the wagon and the spade made to set the post at the horse's 
head wherever he makes his first stand. Here he should be 
firmly tied without unharnessing and left until thoroughly 
tired of standing. If he will not go on then without the 
whip he should be left several hours more, always without 
food or drink until he finds he is punishing himself, which 
almost any horse of intelligence will conclude after standing 
from thirty to thirty-six hours. When the poor beast does 
start amiably, he should be praised and petted without stint. 
After a horse has reached twelve years of age, and perhaps 
balked and been abused for it most of this time, it may be 
doubtful if he can be reformed. 

Some teamsters start a balky horse by taking him from 
the wagon and making him turn around in a short circle until 
giddy. If he doesn't go after the first dance of this sort re- 
peat the process. 

To cure a horse of rubbing his tail, wash the dock with 
warm water and good yellow soap (not soft soap), and thor- 



WHIMS AND VICES. 



51 



oughly well dry the part with a clean coarse rubber ; the 
rubbing to be kept up until the part is not only dry, but well 
warm with the friction. Also inject a little sweet oil into 
the rectum. Then apply a liniment made of new milk and 
spirits of turpentine, in the proportion of an ounce of the lat- 
ter to eight ounces of the fonner. 

If the horse kicks the sides of the stall he can probably be 
broken of the habit by hanging a smooth stick of wood from 
the joist above by a rope, so that when he indulges his vice, 
his feet or legs will strike the stick. This will put it in mo- 
tion ; it will swing back and forth and take his attention so 
he will forget about kicking. This is a pretty sure cure. 

There is no escape for the puller tied in the following 
manner, and the tie will in time break the bad habit : Make 
a slip-noose of a strong manilla rope and place it around the 
animal just forward of the hind legs, having the noose on 
the under side. Then pass the rope between the body and 
girt, next between the forward legs and through the halter 
ring and post and tie to the girt. After the puller has set 
back on this novel tie once or twice he will find he is only 
squeezing himself unpleasantly and that without breaking a 
halter or doing any damage. 

If the horse paws in the stable, turn it out every day for a 
run in a yard. When driven every day it will not paw, un- 
less fed irregularly. 

If you cannot stop your horse bolting his food by putting 
a handful of shelled corn in his manger, give him cut hay 
with ground feed. He will masticate that. 

To prevent a horse from rolling in the stable : Fasten a 
strap to the ceiling above his shoulders, letting the lower end 
hang about two and one-half feet from the ground. Fasten 
a ring to the top of the halter, put a snap on the end of the 
strap, and snap into the ring. " Simple but safe. 



52 



WHIMS AND VICES. 




To prevent a horse from tearing the blanket with his teeth, 
a leather shield, as shown in the picture, is sewed to the halter 
which does not interfere with the animal eating, but does with 
its habit of tearing its blanket. 
The shield should extend four 
inches below the nose. 

The habit oi shying may come 
from timidity or defective eye- 
sight. If the latter, it cannot 
be entirely cured ; if the former, 
gentleness and good sense in 
the driver will in a great meas- 
ure overcome the difficulty. 
Never whip a shying horse past the object which frightens it. 
This only confirms the habit. Go slow ; let the horse have 
time to see the object and learn that it will not hurt him. 

A very bad habit in a horse is that of sudden starting 
when harnessed, and often leads to broken traces, swingle- 
trees, and to runaways and smashups. The fault is usually 
taught the horse by a fool driver who cuts him with the whip 
unexpectedly. A vice of this kind, in a horse that is afraid 
of the whip, is rarely cured, but may be mitigated by gen- 
tleness. 

Rtimiing away '\% \}a& sRox^A. oi vic^'i. Carelessness is the 
mother of the runaway horse. "When the fault is once 
established it is difficult of cure. All runaways, or horses 
hard to hold, should be only used with a safety bit, one that 
will be severe enough to make it painful to attempt to run. 
By the careful use of such a bit some horses may be grad- 
ually cured of the habit of running away. 



CHAPTER V. 

HARNESS HINTS. 

Halters — The Collar — Blinders — In Fly- time — Triple Reins 
— Leading a Broncho — A Harness Closet — What Harriet 
Says. 

HALTERS AND HARNESS. 
Many a horse is lost or seriously damaged by halters that 

are unsafe, because weak or improperly constructed. Pullers 
are the result of breaking away. A horse 
that is tied with a halter made like No. I 
will rarely continue to pull. It is like the 
ordinary halter, excepting that the chin strap 
is double, and the ring is placed on but half 
of it. The instant the horse attempts to pull 
he finds his nose suddenly compressed and 

his breath shut off. 

The unpleasant sensation ceases at once when he stands 

up to the post and behaves himself. This is an effective 

halter to place on halter-pullers. No. 2 is 

made of a single piece of rope, can be 

constructed in five minutes at a cost of five 

cents, and is extremely handy where one 

suddenly desires a number of halters for 

sending away horses that have been sold. 

It is not a safe night halter, as it is liable to 

be rubbed off. By attaching a throat strap 

to it, however, it may be made to serve satisfactorily for 

some months. 





54 



HARNESS HINTS. 




A safe and neat tie is a good strap or rope, with a snap on 
one end. Tie* the strap to the post, pass the snap through 
the bit, over the horse's neck, and snap into the same bit- 
ring. Any attempt to get away draws the bit towards the 
crest of the neck mi comfortably. 

The good road halter is the simple one drawn. 
The muzzle piece is a slip-noose, and the only 
other strap goes over the head back of the bridle, 
so it cannot be worked off. Throughout it is 
made of inch and a half heavy leather, and pull- 
ing only compresses the horse's mouth. It is 
quickly and easily put on, even with numb hands, 
and is tasteful for ladies' use. Don't tolerate a road halter 
with a short tie strap. 

Keep the collar clean. Oil it once a month, the rest of 
the harness twice a year. Clean the leather before you 
apply the dressing — twice as much neat's-foot oil as beef 
tallow, with a dash of castor oil, no lampblack. Oil to the 
harness increases the wear of both it and the horse. 

A good plan of haltering horses 
is shown here. Put a staple on the 
outside of the manger, put the halter 
strap through this, and tie the end 
of the halter to a block of wood 
below the staple. This will always 
keep the slack taut. 

Take the horse to the harness 
shop, and do not buy a collar that 
does not fit. A slight misfit may 
be overcome by making a cut where 
it will be covered by the hame and 
removing some of the padding. The collar will not be 
injured. 




HARNESS HINTS. 55 

An unnecessarily cruel thing about a harness is a tight 
throat strap. Don't leave it so loose that the bridle can be 
rubbed off during fly-time, but see that it does not press the 
throat when the head is up, thus cutting off the breath, stop- 
ping the blood and causing a swelling of the throat glands. 

It is cruel to make a horse work in a hard, ill-fitting 
collar. How do you like a shoe that causes blisters, corns 
and bunions on your feet ? 

In the name of all that is humane, dispense with the old 
flapping blinders that have long ago lost shape and straps to 
keep them in place. They endanger the sight and are a 
source of discomfort to the poor beast obliged to submit to 
such cruelty. Take your jackknife and cut them off. 

The only horse that should have the overdraw check rein 
is the one that is hard-mouthed and pulls on the lines, or the 
one that continually jerks on the lines to loosen them. 
Such horses are greatly improved by this rein. 

Take the fasteners from an old overshoe and sew or rivet 
a five-inch strip of leather to the same, and use for horse- 
tail tie. 

In fly-time, put a big crupper pad imder the tail of the 
horse, big enough to raise it up so the animal cannot hug it 
when it switches over the reins. This is a simple contrivance 
and a safe one. Put buckles on this big pad and buckle it 
under the back strap, the same as 
the regular one. When imder 
the tail, the horse cannot hold 
the rein. 

Here is shown the way that 
shy bronchos are led behind a 
wagon in the far West. Take a 
half-inch rope, lay the two ends 
together and tie a knot about five feet from the other end 




56 



HARNESS HINTS. 



where you see A. Now lay it on so that the knot is in 
the center of the horse's back and his tail over the rope, 
put the ends through the halter ring at C, one rope being on 
each side of the neck, and tie the ends together to the wagon. 
You may be sure that the animal will lead and not pull 
back the wagon. Horses if tied in this way in narrow stalls 
can be cured of halter-pulling. 

Triple reins are easily made 
and are sometimes needed on the 
farm. Have the harness maker 
make the extra check lines the 
right length ; and then put them 
on the buckle of the lines in use 
and you have them in good 
shape. The ring and snap should 
be used on all the lines. In 
driving four horses abreast use 
the usual checks on each team, and put a short "jocky 
strap " on the inside horses, from bit to bit. 




A HARNESS CLOSET. 
Few things have a greater tendency to preserve harnesses 
than neatness and order, whose prime essentials are careful 
cleaning and careful hanging. 
No good horseman throws 
his harnesses on the floor or 
carelessly over a hook in the 
open barn or stable. A tight 
closet, where all the har- 
nesses, saddles, sponges, oils, 

wrenches, and other stable requisites may be kept away from 
ammonia, dust and light, is a great economy. Its first cost 
■does not need to be great if one possesses an old door. A 




HARNESS HINTS. 57 

few feet of matched lumber will quickly take the shape of 
the closet shown, in almost any part of the bam, if the 
manipulator has a little ingenuity. If the lumber is old it 
should be liberally puttied and painted. The habit of put- 
ting in this closet everything which will make the bam look 
untidy will soon give the owner a reputation for neatness, as 
well as lightening the drain upon his pocketbook for things 
lost or spoiled. 

Harriet Biggle says: 

Hang lip the halters where they can be foimd in the dark 
on retiiTJiiiig from a drive. 

Knots in the traces look bad for the man who ties thefn. 

Keep the harness strong in every part or there may be a 
break aivay from home, a rnna7i'av, and somebody hurt or 
possibly killed. 

Don't try to fit a horse to the collar. It won t work. Fit 
the collar to the horse. 

In oiling harnesses which have been neglected, a better 
supply can be put on more quickly, reaching to every rusty 
buckle, tongue and crevice, with a small pointed brush, than 
with any other appliance. 

Be sure the blinders do not rub the eyes of the horse. 



CHAPTER VL 

AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 

Most Ailments Come from Improper Feeding and Watering 
— Importance of Having a Good Teamster — Worms — 
Indigestion — Colic — Sore Shoulders — Choking Distemper 
— Heaves — Dysentery. 

With food don't stuff me, yet stint me not ; 
Give me water to drink zvhen I am not too hot ; 
Then come what may, P II fail yoit not. 

The majority of horse ailments may be traced, directly or 
indirectly, to improper feeding and watering, careless man- 
agement in the stable and in harness. 

A careless driver is a very frequent cause of loss. On the 
contrary, a driver who is a close observer of the team in his 
charge, noting every move made and understanding the ani- 
mals' requirements and ability, rarely has a sick, lame or 
galled horse. For this reason, to place a cheap man over a 
good pair of horses is the height of folly. The man getting 
one- third more wages, who is a good teamster, which in- 
cludes the terms "good manager," " close observer," and 
"humane," will much more than earn the extra money paid 
him in increase of work performed, decrease of grain, med- 
icine and repair bills, and length of the horses' period of 
usefulness. There is no reason why a first-class team, six to 
eight years old, should not serve continuously and satisfac- 
torily for a term of twelve to sixteen years, if properly pro- 
tected, fed and looked out for. 



AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 59 

If, from improper care or feeding, or from some unavoid- 
able cause, your horse is out of condition, you should dose 
him with little medicine and much common sense. 

The horse that allows himself to be caught lying down 
may be considered out of condition or lacking sufficient nu- 
tritious food. A quart of linseed meal divided into three 
feeds and added to his grain daily will do him much good 
and help a quick shedding of the coat. 

If a horse cough, dampen his hay, wet his mixed feed, 
keep him out of a draught ; after exercise blanket him. 

Keep hot poultices of bread and milk or oil meal on the 
neck of horses with throat Distemper ; change them often. 
In severe cases rub the glands and muscles with spirits of 
turpentine and camphor. 

Look out for Scratches. Many a horse is ruined by allow- 
ing the legs to go dirty. It takes only a few minutes to wash 
them clean and rub them dry. If the skin begins to crack 
it must not be left or it will become almost incurable. The 
skin must be kept clean and soft. Cut the hair off short and 
paint it over with chloride of zinc and water — ^thirty grains 
to one pint of water. Put this on once a day and rub with 
glycerine. 

Horses having greedy appetites, rough coats and poor 
condition may be suspected of Worms. Such animals often 
pass long, round worms. Copperas or tobacco will clear the 
worms out of the stomach of a horse. A tablespoonful of 
copperas for two days and then stop for two. A handful of 
tobacco dried and made into powder and mixed with the 
grain. Give this for three days and then hold on for a few 
days. For worms in the rectum a syringe must be used. 
Salt and water is good ; carbolic acid diluted fifty times in 
water, or, what is better, thymo-cresol. This would un- 
doubtedly be a good internal remedy for worms, diluted one 



6o AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 

to fifty parts of water. A tablespoonful of the thymo- 
cresol diluted with a quart of water would make a good 
dose as a worm exterminator. 

Some horses, although having a good appetite, remain 
gaunt and thin from Indigestion. They should be given 
some strong purgative, like Barbadoes aloes, combined with 
powdered ginger, one-half ounce ; Glauber's salts, one-half 
pound, dissolved in a quart of water. When the intestines 
have been thoroughly cleaned by this process, give daily the 
following powder : Sulphate of iron, three drachms ; sul- 
phate of soda, two ounces ; nux vomica, ten grains ; ginger, 
one-half ounce. This powder may be continued daily for a 
month. Give all the rock salt the animal will lick. 

Spasmodic Colic begins suddenly. The horse stamps im- 
patiently, looks backward, soon paws, and then rolls. After 
an interval of ease the pains return with increased severity. 
Give chloral hydrate, one ounce, in half a pint of water as 
a drench ; or ether and laudanum, two ounces each, in lin- 
seed oil, half a pint ; or sulphuric ether and alcohol, two 
ounces of each in eight ounces of water. If nothing else is 
handy, give of whisky half a pint in hot water. If not re- 
lieved in one hour repeat any of the doses prescribed. The 
body should be warmly clothed and sweating encouraged. 
Dip blankets in hot water containing a small quantity of tur- 
pentine and hold them in place under the body with dry 
blankets, or rub the abdomen with stimulants or mustard 
water. If cramp is due to irritation in the bowels, a cure is 
not complete until a physic of aloes, one ounce, or linseed 
oil, one pint, is given. Soapy or salt water aid the cure 
when used as an injection. 

Wind Colic is caused by feeding after long fasting, or 
when the animal is exhausted by driving, or by new grain or 
hay, too much grain fed, or by sour or indigestible food. 



AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 6 1 

The horse seems dull, paws, and the pains are continuous. 
The belly enlarges, and when struck in front of the haunches 
sounds like a drum. If not soon relieved, difificult breath- 
ing, sweating, staggering and death follow. Give alkalines 
to neutralize the gases formed. No simple remedy is better 
than common baking soda, two to four ounces. If this 
fails, give chloride of lime in half- ounce doses, or the same 
quantity of carbonate of ammonia dissolved and diluted with 
oil or milk until relieved. Chloral hydrate is particularly 
useful in both wind and spasmodic colic. Horsemen would 
be wise to keep it ready for emergencies. Physic should be 
given in flatvdent colic, and turpentine, one to two ounces, 
with linseed oil, eight ounces, frequently, to stimulate the 
motion of the bowels. Colic should not be neglected nor 
the patient left until certain of cure or death. 

For Sore Shoulders in horses, the best thing is to have 
properly fitting collars. If the surface galls under the collar 
wash with salt and water at night and with clear water in the 
morning, and protect the spot with a pad under the collar. 
If the skin breaks use a lotion of one drachm of carbolic acid 
to one quart of water twice a day, and relieve the horse from 
work for a day or two. It is cruel to work a horse with a 
raw sore shoulder. 

Choking Distemper prevails at times in many parts of the 
country. It is sometimes called spinal meningitis or putrid 
sore throat. The animal often falls down paralyzed, cannot 
arise, and if left prostrate is almost sure to die. He must be 
got upon his feet, and if he cannot stand must be swung. A 
majority of cases are fatal. It is caused by some specific 
poison taken into the system with food or drink, mostly the 
former. Dirty mangers, rotting roots or meal, and mouldy 
hay, especially meadow hay, are usually the medium by 
which the disease is acquired. The moral is to have every- 



62 AILMENTS AND REMEDIES. 

thing sweet and clean that the animal eats and drinks, and 
have no decayed matter in the entry or in any other part of 
the barn. 

The peculiar movement of the abdomen and flank, point 
to Heaves, and a cough usually accompanies it. There is no 
cure for the established disease. Careful dieting will relieve 
the distress, but this will appear as bad as ever when the 
stomach is overloaded. The best quality of food lessens 
*' heaves." Food that is too bulky and lacks nutriment, 
has much to do with the disease. Feed affected animals 
only a small quantity of hay once a day, and invariably water 
at least fifteen minutes before feeding, and never directly 
after meal. Work right after eating aggravates the symp- 
toms. Carrots, potatoes or turnips, chopped or mixed with 
oats or corn are a good diet. What bulky food is given 
should be in the evening. Medical treatment is worth less 
than dieting. A predisposition to the disease may be in- 
herited. 

If Dysenteiy exists, place the horse in a dry, well-venti- 
lated stable, rub the surface of the body frequently, and keep 
it and the legs warm with blankets and bandages. The food 
must be light and easy to digest, the water pure and in small 
quantities. Give first, castor oil one-half pint and laudanum 
two ounces. The strength must be kept up by milk 
punches, eggs, beef tea, oatmeal gruel, etc. 



CHAPTER VII. 

AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 

Glanders — Gorged Stomach — Lockjaw — Choking — Hooks 
— Lice — Knuckling — Ring Bone — Spavin — Scratches — 
Itching Skin — Overdriven Pace. 

When cooled and rested. 

Give me water and feed ; 
And /' // lijitlingly serve you 
In time of need. 

Whenever a horse is seen to bleed or emit offensive mat- 
ter from the nostrils, Glanders is suspected and treatment 
should not be attempted. It may be a dangerous case, 
which is fatal alike to man and beast. A veterinary sur- 
geon should be called. 

Gorged Stomach results when a horse has been fed after a 
long fast. The small stomach of a horse is so distended 
that it is unable to contract itself upon its contents, a mo- 
tion which is necessary in digestion. The horse becomes 
stupid, slight colicky symptoms are observed, arid he carries 
his head low and extended. As he grows worse he paws, 
becomes delirious, is covered with cold sweat, trembles, 
slobbers, staggers and drops dead. Treatment is difficult. 
A purgative of Barbadoes aloes, one ounce, should be given 
at once, followed by Cayenne pepper, one-half ounce, or 
Jamaica ginger, one-half ounce. If the bowels can be stim- 
ulated to act, they will in a measure relieve the stomach. 
For this purpose use turpentine, two ounces, and linseed oil, 
eight ounces. 



64 AILMENTS AND REMEDIES CONTINUED. 

Horses liable to Staggers and Fits should have harnesses 
that are carefully adjusted, and should not be pushed in hot 
weather. No heavy feed should be given them at any time, 
oats and sweet hay or grass being the best. . Such animals 
should not be driven when it can be avoided. When indi- 
cations point to an attack, the horse should be stopped, his 
harness loosened, some cold water given him to drink and 
his face sponged at the same time. Rye is a bad feed for 
sleepy staggers. 

Lockjaw is caused by cuts, nail in the hoof, etc. Nothing is 
so common from wounds in the feet and from docking. The 
horse is unable to open his jaws to the fullest extent, and 
mastication is impossible. Various muscles twitch, the head 
and tail are elevated and the nose protruded, and the anus is 
compressed. The animal swallows with difficulty; saliva 
flows from the mouth. Of course, in this disease the ne- 
cessity of calling in a skilled veterinary surgeon is indi- 
cated. 

A horse which is frequently or occasionally overtaken with 
Giddiness or Megrims is dangerous to use. This trouble is 
hard to cure. It indicates the need of moderate driving, es- 
pecially in hot weather, and that a small amount of hay 
should be fed. 

Horses that are Choked thrust out their heads, bend and 
stretch the neck, while there is a copious flow of saliva from 
the mouth. In some cases there is distention of the gullet 
on the left side of the neck, if it have descended so far. If 
it be in the upper part of the gullet a man accustomed to 
giving balls may be able to reach it with his hand. Obstruc- 
, tions that have got lower down may be moved upward gently 
from the outside. Sometimes an obstruction is soft and may 
be crushed small enough for the animal to swallow it. A 
mass of meal or other impacted food is sometimes removed 



AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 65 

by frequent drinks of water, and a drench of olive or cotton 
seed oil can do no harm. The plan of reaching a whip or 
heavy piece of rope down the gullet to push the substance 
into the stomach is risky, in the hands of one not accustomed 
to the anatomy of the horse. 

Lampas is usually an imaginary trouble. Very rarely does 
the membrane dire'ctly beneath the upper front teeth congest 
and swell enough to interfere with feeding. When this 
trouble is feared there is no quicker nor surer cure than feed- 
ing a little corn in the ear. When biting off the kernels, 
the horse naturally compresses the membrane or forces it 
back. The burning of the lampas is cruel and unnecessary, 
and if the swelled parts are cut, the cut should not be deep, 
or danger will result. 

There is a widespread delusion that Hooks, so called, is a dis- 
ease affecting the horse's eye. A barbarous custom among cruel 
men is to forcibly destroy the membrane which keeps the eye 
free from foreign substances, but the cruelty does not accom- 
plish the desired result, though it may injure or destroy the 
eye. The obstinacy of the membrane simply shows some- 
thing to be wrong in the anatomy of the horse, just as the 
tongue will indicate to the observing physician when the 
stomach of his subject is out of order. To cut or disturb 
the hooks in the eyes is as absurd as to doctor the tongue 
instead of the stomach in the human case. 

Remove Lice by rubbing the animal with a solution of 
sulphate of potassium, four ounces, and water, one gallon, or 
with strong tar water ; or dust with Persian insect powder ; 
or the skin may be sponged with benzine or quassia chip tea. 
Any of the applications must be repeated a week later to 
destroy the lice hatching in the interval. All blankets should 
be boiled, and the stalls painted with turpentine, and 
littered with fresh pine sawdust. 



65 AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 

Knuckling, or cocked ankle, is a condition of the fetlock 
joint which resembles partial dislocation. The trouble is not 
considered unsoundness, but it predisposes to stumbling. 
Foals are quite subject to it, and no treatment is necessary, 
as the legs straighten up naturally in a few weeks. It is 
caused in horses by heavy and fast work, and is produced 
sometimes by a disease of the suspensory ligament, or of 
the flexor tendons. This should be relieved by proper shoe- 
ing. The toe must be shortened and the heels left high, or 
the shoe should be thin forward with thick heels or high 
calks. 

A Splint may be rubbed off and the work aided by putting 
on a liniment, but few would persevere in the rubbing long 
-enough to make a cure. A blister will do it. 

If the Fetlock be Sprained, and the injury slight, bandage 
and apply cold water frequently. Where the lameness is 
intense, and the swelling and heat great, the leg should be 
kept in a constant stream of cold water. When the inflam- 
mation has been subdued the joint should be blistered. 

Ri7ig Bone is an osseous exudation or bony deposit at the 
crown of the hoof. When its presence is first detected the 
place should be severely blistered once or twice, or red 
iodide of mercury applied. If this fail, firing with the hot 
iron in the hands of a competent surgeon will be necessary. 

If you have a suspicion of a Spavin coming on your horse, 
•employ a good veterinary surgeon. Heroic treatment is the 
•only thing in such cases. Judicious firing, strong blistering 
.and perfect rest for at least six weeks or two months, and 
•good nursing will, in most cases, arrest the disease and cure 
lameness. It is the result of too great exposure in draught 
•or speed, or from slipping and kindred causes. 

■Scratches or grease is frequently proof of carelessness in 
clearing stables, and includes poor ventilation. The trouble 



AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 67 

may result from condition of the blood, from unwhole- 
some fodder, or work in irritating mud or dust, especially of 
a limestone character. It has been brought on by using 
caustic soap on the legs, clipping the heels in wintertime, by 
debilitating disease, etc. The first step in a cure is to 
remove the cause, and if there is much local heat, administer 
a laxative like a pound of Glauber's salts. Highly-fed 
animals should have their rations reduced, or replaced by bran 
mashes, flaxseed, fruits, roots, and other non-stimulating food. 
Bitter tonics are essential also, and may be continued six 
weeks to two months. If the skin is unbroken, bathe with 
water, one quart, in which sugar of lead, two drachms, is dis- 
solved, or annoint with vaseline, one ounce, sugar of lead, 
one drachm, and carbolic acid, ten drops. To clip the hair 
from the horse's heels and poultice them with grated carrot, 
night and morning, is sometimes beneficial. Free exercise 
is important. Rub the heels dry and apply equal parts of 
glycerine and compound tincture of aloes. 

The treatment for Wind Galls consists in pressure by 
means of bandages and by cold lotions. Blistering will 
remove them. Capped Hocks are reduced in the same 
manner. 

There is no treatment that will surely avail in the cure of 
String Halt. 

For Itching Skin, wash the skin thoroughly with carbolic 
soapsuds, and give the horse a half pound of Glauber's salts 
daily for a week. Do not feed him any grain but wheat, 
scalded bran and linseed meal, three quarts of the former 
and one quart of the latter, for two weeks. There will 
speedily come a change. Card him daily. Scald his oats 
and give him salt daily. Feed oats, bran and linseed after 
the two weeks and scald the whole mess. When horses are 
covered with bunches or lumps, their blood is out of order. 



68 AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 

Give closes of Glauber's salts daily and hot bran mashes. 
Give salts a half pound daily. A gill of raw linseed oil 
every day will be good, mixed with the bran. 

The horse which eats its own excrement does it for the 
acids it contains, which are voided in it and in the urine 
which it has absorbed.^ Give such a horse a pinch of cop- 
peras, bone dust, salt, ashes and saltpetre mixed in its meal 
once a day. A few days of pasturing is good. 

Horses snort and wheeze because of an enlargement of the 
glands in the nostrils. A skilled veterinarian can remove 
the trouble by cutting it out. Doctoring will not cure snor- 
ing or wheezing horses. The air passages are stopped. 

A twenty-year-old horse was not doing well. Upon 
examination his front teeth were found to be so long that his 
grinders were kept from coming together, and he could not 
masticate his food. His teeth were filed off, and the sharp 
points evened with a float, and he is now doing as well as any 
of the younger horses. Watch the teeth of the old horse. 

An experienced horseman, if human, will not push his 
horse beyond his strength by Overriding or Driving ; still at 
times an indiscreet driver will bring an animal to the verge 
of extinction, when it is well to know what to do for him. 
The symptoms are plain in the audible breathing, staggering 
gait, exhausted appearance and heaving flank. The girts 
must be removed and the face turned toward the wind, 
the animal being protected from the sun meantime. 
The head must be left free and the limbs and body well 
rubbed. The movement of the ribs should not be hindered 
in any way. A few swallows of cold water may be allowed, 
and, in hot weather, the mouth', forehead and face may be 
sponged with it. When sufficiently revived the horse should 
be slowly led to a comfortable box-stall and heavily blanketed, 
woolen bandages being wound about the legs as well. If 



AILMENTS AND REMEDIES — CONTINUED. 69 

the horse has fallen he must not be allowed to lie until he 
voluntarily gets up, but must be propped up on his breast and 
not allowed to lie flat on his side. Heat exhaustion is some- 
what similar in symptom and demands similar treatment, 
with the addition of throwing cold water over the animal, 
particularly wetting the head, and causing a current of air to 
pass over him that evaporation may take place. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

DOCTORING. 

Giving Medicine — Medicine Ball — Injections — Physic — 
Condition Powders — Ending a Horse's Life. 

Many inexperienced horsemen know nothing of how to 
give a horse medicine. Some who can administer a drench 
have never tried balling. Many get bitten who try, so it is 
best to be careful. Hold the head high, reach the fingers into 
the animal's mouth just back of the forward teeth where there 
are no teeth, and no danger of being bitten, and grasp the 
tongue, pull it out gently, and as you do so the horse will 
open his mouth, allowing the tongue to loll between the 
grinders. The medicine ball may then be safely pushed 
down the animal's throat as far as the hand can be made to 
reach, for the animal will not attempt to close his jaws while 
his tongue is between them. Two persons, one to administer 
the medicine, while the other is holding the tongue and 
head, will accomplish the desired object more quickly. The 
throat should be watched carefully, and the animal not be 
allowed to lower his head until he is seen to swallow. The 
tongue should be pushed back into his mouth as soon as the 
ball is put well down the throat, as it will assist in the swal 
lowing process. Horse balls usually come wrapped in 
tissue paper, and should not be unwrapped before adminis- 
tering, as it prevents bad taste in the mouth. 

The giving of a drench is so easy and common as not to 
need description. The medicine should be shaken well with 



DOCTORING. 71 

half a pint of water, and poured into a wide-mouthed heavy 
glass bottle that the horse cannot easily crush. Having se- 
cured the head and tongue as described in " administering a 
ball," turn up the bottle in the horse's mouth, holding the 
head so the contents will run down his throat. Remove the 
bottle after pouring in about four ounces. If he does not 
swallow at once, gently close the nostrils for a moment, or 
tickle the roof of his mouth with the finger nail. This will 
cause him to move the tongue and before he knows it he will 
have swallowed the mixture. If coughing occur or the 
bottle be crushed, lower the horse's head immediately. 

Injections should be small in quantity when for absorp- 
tion, and at a temperature of 90 to 100 degrees. They 
should be introduced only after the last bowel has been, 
emptied by hand or by copious enemas. Clysters are given, 
usually to aid the action of physics, and should be in suffi- 
cient quantity to cause the animal to eject them. Warm 
water, salt and water, or soap and water, one gallon or more 
at a time may be given every half hour. It is best that they 
be not discharged immediately. Liquids maybe injected by 
means of a large syringe, or by a simple funnel made for the 
purpose of a two-quart pail or pan seven inches in diameter, 
to which a pipe sixteen inches long is soldered at right 
angles. This pipe is introduced into the rectum and must 
be made perfectly smooth and be oiled before using. Pour 
the liquid into the funnel rapidly after it is inserted, and the 
bowels will be drenched as quickly and effectively as by a 
more complicated arrangement, and in 
safety. Or a common funnel and rubber C ^ 

pipe will answer a better purpose. Be- L S 

sides those described, there are few or 

no other methods for administering doses that are necessary 

or safe enough for the novice to attempt. 



72 DOCTORING. 

An excellent physic ball for a horse is made of powdered 
Barbadoes aloes, seven drachms, powdered gentian, two 
drachms, and sufficient syrup to stick it into a hard ball. The 
ball should be three or four times as long as its diameter. 
When a horse has been physicked severely he should not 
have any hard exercise for several days, but should be walked 
a little every day and allowed to stand in the sun. Bran 
mashes should take the place of his regular ration for three 
feeds, water often, but sparingly, even if thirsty. 

Condition powders for horses are not only expensive and 
undesirable, but frequently unsafe as well. Recent analyses 
of condition powders selling by the package at the rate of 
^1,000 per ton, have been found to contain linseed meal 
principally, with small quantities of camphor and other 
drugs, more or less harmful, in varying amounts, the mix- 
ture not costing the manufacturers over ^28 to ^^30 per ton. 
As a natural tonic for the system, the safest 'and best condi- 
tion powder permissible under all conditions is good food, 
perhaps placing linseed meal at the head of the list of grains. 
It imparts strength and tone to the system, nourishing the 
nerves as well as the muscles, acting like a gentle laxative 
upon the bowels, mellowing the hide, glossing the coat, and 
removing it betimes in the spring. No prescription is bet- 
ter than the following, as a rule : Dried sulphate of iron, 
two drachms, powdered gentian and powdered fenugreek, of 
each four drachms, all in one powder, to be put in the feed 
night and morning for three weeks. 

There is danger in using many of the advertised tonics 
and condition powders which contain arsenic. These bene- 
fit animals at first, but not permanently. 

How to poultice a horse's leg is often a problem, espe- 
cially when the poultice must be kept at a point high up or 
arching. A bag is prepared a little larger than the leg, and 



DOCTORING. 73 

with no bottom. Around the lower edge a puckering string 
is run in to tie around the leg. Next, cords two-thirds the 
length of the bag are made fast to the top of it, and then 
sewed to the bottom, so the lower third pouches below and 
outside of the puckering cord. The top is held up by cords 
fastened to old harness, kept on the horse. The poultice is 
poured in, a bountiful quantity being used. Such a bandage 
will hold it in place without waste or failure unless the injury 
itch or pain severely. Then the animal will use its teeth 
upon it, if allowed to reach it. 

If animals must be killed, humanity requires that it be 
done in the quickest and least painful manner. 
For shooting a horse, place the pistol muzzle 
within a few inches of the head, and shoot at 
the place marked above by a dot, aiming 
toward the center of the head. If it must be 
done by blows, blindfold, and with a heavy axe 
or hammer strike at the same spot as above. 
Two vigorous, well directed blows should make death sure. 
Be careful not to shoot or strike too low. 

If there is no other way to get rid of dead carcasses cover 
them with earth a few inches deep and bum them. The 
earth will absorb a good part of the gases and when burning 
put on more. When all burned, cover up well with earth 
and then mix the mass and sow it broadcast on any land and 
it will tell wonderfully. 




74 DOCTORING. 



MARE MAXIMS. 

John Tucker says : 

Dont breed scrubs. If s zuicked. 

If %ve breed our colts in the autumn we reduce their cost, 
as the mare can do team work all summer. 

The same mare to the same horse and all the neighbors 
doing the same thing will get the matches. 

Alares bred at home, not traveled, are more sure. In 
many cases it would be better to take the mare to the stable 
of the sire before the time of heat and leave her a fczv days 
after service. Anyway, she should be walked all the zuay 
home. 

The old mare should be kept breeding, for if you skip 
over a year she may not conceive again. Mares zuill breed 
usually till twenty, and often for years after. 

We zuould not risk feeding rye to mares in foal, as the 
ergot zvhich is so conimon in rye acts directly 07t the womb 
and uterus. Ergot is a poison. 



CHAPTER IX. 

MARE AND COLT. 

Have an Aim in Breeding — Breeding Farm Horses — The 
P'oal — Feeding the Coh — General Observations. 

A good mare will pay the mortgage. 

Keep the trotter notion out of your head. Trotters make 
mortgages. 




We should rear our own teams and then we can know of 
what they are made. When a man buys a horse he does 
not know how many hereditary spavins, ring bones, curbs or 
blind eyes, or how much heaves he is purchasing at a big 
price per pound. 



76 MARE AND COLT. 

Have an aim in breeding and try to breed all of the colts 
to a standard. They will then make pairs and sell for 
more. A whole town should unite in this and make a repu- 
tation for good horses and horses alike. Where this is done 
money will flow in like a steady stream. 

Defects caused by accidents should not debar a good 
mare from being a breeder. Such as pin-hipped, or injuries 
caused by overwork or bad shoeing. Avoid a kicker, a 
puller or a balky mare. 

Many a man owning a valuable road mare will not breed 
her because he dislikes to spoil her shape. But this trouble 
can be entirely prevented by care directly after foaling. The 
dam has a feeling of emptiness succeeding parturition, and 
will eat abnormally if not restrained. If this inclination is 
controlled for three or four days she will return to her nor- 
mal form. Soothing, laxative and nutritious food must be 
administered and no stuffing done with hay. 

The farmer should never fool with trotters unless he hap- 
pens to have a genuine, full-bred trotting mare, and if he 
has such a one he should sell it. Paper trotters are no 
good, neither are those which make fast time around bar- 
room stoves. Blood will tell with trotters, but it must be 
there. The last kind of horses for farmers to breed are the 
expected trotters. 

What are you going to do ? Are you going to breed farm 
horses ? Then get a pony-built, solid mare and take her to 
the same kind of a horse, weighing about 1,200 pounds. 
You want a mare and horse with a good, strong walking 
gait and a square, steady trotting motion. Avoid the lungers, 
the high-steppers and the fast trotting action. Such horses 
will not settle down to the slow and steady gait required on 
the farm and for hauling loads, and they are not so strong. 
They will fret and fume and tear themselves all to pieces. 



MARE AND COLT. 77 

Going to such sires and using such dams to breed work horses- 
is cruelty to man and beast. A horse is fitted for its business 
just as much as a minister, a lawyer or a doctor. And when 
you get one out of its natural profession you make amistake» 
Such animals will do better to go single ; but then they are 
apt to be fretty. 

If the mare is difficult to get with foal or has never had a 
colt, take her to the sire at the first heat in the spring. Try 
a yoimg horse which has been exercised all winter. If these 
attempts fail turn her to pasture with a stud colt, and let her 
run there a couple of months. 

It is a mistake to work a mare all day and tire her out, 
and then take her to the horse. The best time is in the 
morning when she is not exhausted. Let there be full vigor, 
and never force at the time of stinting. 

A foal may come any time, but in the early spring is 
best. Autumn colts will do well if carefully wintered. Colts 
bom in midsummer — fly-time — should be housed during the 
day, and the mare fed green food. These extra cares are 
an objection to this time of breeding. The surest time for 
conception is the ninth day after foaling. 

If a mare is inclined not to have much milk before foal- 
ing, feed her for six weeks ahead to produce milk. Give 
her clover hay ; carrots, a peck a day in two feeds ; wheat 
middlings, six quarts and oats six quarts. Rub her udder 
several times a day and stretch it. 

A mare carries her foal from eleven months to fourteen,, 
usually about eleven. 

As mares vary so much in the period of gestation, the 
only safe plan is to put your animal in a separate stable or 
suitable box-stall at about ten months from service. 

When a mare in foal gets all the clover hay she wants,, 
she has the best food she can have, and no grain is neces- 



78 MARE AND COLT. 

sary. When she is fed mostly on straw, she requires bran 
or oats to make up the elements required to keep up her 
A^itality and to make the colt strong. 

Many persons think that a mare should rest from work for 
several weeks before foaling. It is not so. If a brood 
mare has been accustomed to farm work before she is with 
foal, let her continue at such work, without forcing her, until 
;she is about ready to drop her colt. Regular and moderate 
exercise is as necessary to the health and comfort of horses 
as it is of human beings, and in no M'^ay can brood mares 
have it better than by being used in the manner to which 
their muscles have been accustomed. Of course, she should 
rest a few days after the colt is born, on her account and the 
■colt's also. Straining work is not good, but any kind of 
light work will not injure. 

To dry a mare up in her milk, feed her straw for a 
few days, or a little hay, and rub soft soap on her udder. 
Give her a reduced amount of water. Milk the udder out 
■only partially each day. 

Choose mares that are young, sound, roomy and of good 
disposition. They are better if larger than the horse, rather 
than smaller. 

The stallion must not have ring bone, navicular disease, 
•cataract, unsound feet or bad temper, however beautiful in 
form he may be. 

Impotency in stallions is caused more by want of exercise 
(than by any other cause. Feeding fattening foods is also a 
■chief cause. Moderate work is better than idleness. Any 

the inside, which has a sloping fender four feet high to 



MARE AND COLT. 79 

prevent the horse from getting cast. It is a safe paddock. 
The door has its fender fastened to it, so that when shut the 
whole inside is protected alike. A scantling from the bot- 
tom to the side in the corners and middle keeps the fenders 
in place. 

Good food, good water, these I need ; 

For kindness also do I plead ; 

Good grooming, too, will not be vain — 

' Tis health to me — to you great gain ; 

Daily, I beg, this care renew — 

This is yotir duty — this my due. 

If the foal be born in the foetal membranes it must be lib- 
erated at once or it will suffocate. If the navel cord is not 
ruptured it may be tightly tied in two places near together 
and cut between the cordings, or it may be severed by 
scraping it with a dull knife about two inches from the 
navel. 

Colts will bleed to death if the umbilical cord is severed 
too close to the body and too soon after the colt is bom. 
Watch things to have the best luck. 

If the dam will not lick it, then it must be carefully 
rubbed dry with hay and cloth and its hair left straight. It 
must also be kept warm. The first milk of the mare acts as 
a physic upon her offspring. 

Be sure the little foal gets some suck. It is sure to do 
well if it should suck within a half hour after being born. 

Don't be such a goose as to tie a mare that is due to foal. 
Give her a box-stall. 

The sucking colt can be injured by his own mother's 
milk, if allowed to draw it while she is overheated from work 
or driving. 

When the colt is boni during the heat of summer it is not 
safe to leave the mare out in the sun with it until it is a few 



So MARE AND COLT. 

days old, as the colt will lie down and it may be killed by 
the heat. 

A scouring foal should have careful treatment. Cover 
closely with a warm blanket with two surcingles, that it may 
keep his belly warm, and bandage the legs to arms and 
thighs. Drench with sixteen to twenty ounces of castor oil 
containing one-quarter ounce of laudanum. Give but little 
drink, and make it tepid. Feed rice boiled to a pulp in new 
milk, and one quart of new milk maybe given daily. When 
the foal is stronger, give a few crushed oats and good old 
hay. A slight looseness of the bowels may cause no anxiety, 
as this is natural with young colts. If the little colt does 
not get milk enough, feed it milk and oatmeal made into a 
thin gruel. 

The greatest trouble with little colts, when young, is con- 
stipation. This may be regulated by giving the mother 
sloppy food, such as scalded bran. If the foal is bound up, 
when born, give it an injection at once of starch, molasses 
and warm water. Repeat every half hour until relief comes. 
As he gets older, relieve constipation with linseed meal, po- 
tatoes or carrots. 

A great many farmers who raise colts don't seem to know 
that it pays to feed colts well from the beginning, and to 
make them grow as fast as possible. They should not feed 
for spavins, ring bones, and other blemishes or defects in the 
limbs, and yet they do. Some men's colts are always un- 
sound in their limbs, and the reason is they do not have 
food suitable to make a perfect development of the bones, ten- 
dons, tissues and muscles. 

Do not imagine the colt is all right because it has all the 
hay it can eat^ This is not wisdom. Give it less hay and 
two to four quarts of bran and oats mixed, according to its 
size. This kind of food will make strong bone and joints. 



MARE AND COLT. 8l 

What is a colt good for without good joints ? They are worth 
more than size or style. We can have both, but by all means 
have pood joints, and to get them there must be phosphates 
in the feed, and the bran and oats contain these. 

If the little colt is fed cow's milk, it should be boiled, as 
it will then digest it easier. 




If the weanlings are kept in the stable, give them plenty 
of bedding, so that there will be some spring under their 
feet. Sawdust is good. Colts kept on a dry, hard floor will 
get sore in their joints and may become curbed or throw out 
ring bones. Standing on manure is not good. If the floor is 
wet and slippery they are likely to slip, and in this way be- 
come blemished. 



82 MARE AND COLT. 

Don't leave the colts out in a cold rainstorm. Better let 
them go hungry for a little while than expose them in this 
way. 

Looks go a great ways. The colt that is groomed clean, 
and is made gentle and handy, will sell for a good price ; 
while the unkempt, wild and unbroken colt, will not sell 
at all. 

If the colt carries his tail on one side, employ a skilled 
veterinary surgeon who will cut a cord on the opposite side, 
which will remedy the difficulty and add fifty dollars to the 
value of your horse. 

If the colt's ankles seem a little tired and weak after driv- 
ing, bathe them thoroughly with cold salt and water and 
wrap them in bandages, but do not bandage them tightly. 

If a colt should turn out to be very excitable or nervous, 
the feed of oats should be cut down or stopped altogether. 



CHAPTER X. 



THE COLT S EDUCATION. 



It Should Begin Early — Some Methods — Gentleness Neces- 
sary — Tying Securely — Forming Good , Habits — In 
General. 



A colt should be really broken before it is ever put before 
any vehicle, and then there will be little trouble with it. To 
hitch a wild and unmanageable 
colt to a wagori or a sleigh the 
first time is about as foolish a 
thing as can be done. It should 
be taught to do everything re- 
quired of it except pulling at the 
collar, before it is ever made fast 
to anything, and then there is no 
danger of its getting frightened 
and learning any tricks. A prom- 
ising colt may be ruined in a 
minute with such foolishness. A 
colt learns one thing at a time, and to attempt to crowd the 
whole horse education into it at once, and its first lesson, 
shows more jackass than horse sense. Go slow, be cool, 
try little and persevere, should be the horseman's motto. 

The young colt cannot be trained too early. In fact, the 
sooner he is . disciplined the more quickly he is subju- 
gated, and with the least danger to himself and owner. 

After halter breaking, which should be begun so young 
that he will never know liberty of head, he should at first be 
taught to lead, by being tied opposite his dam on short trips. 




§4 THE colt's education. 

Very soon he should be gently accustomed to the harness 
and taught its harmlessness, and then broken to the bit. 
Next, a strong line should extend from the bit nearest the 
shaft and fastened firmly to it, and another line should run 
from the opposite bit through the turret ring and to the 
hand of the driver. Thus, the pair can be driven together, 
the youngster's gait being constantly influenced, and quite a 
little speed developed without having him draw or carry any 
weight, and while he feels the conditions are perfectly 
natural. The only difficulty to be encountered will be that 
the colt will get in the way of the wheel. This is easily 
avoided by attaching a small bent pole to the shaft at one 
end and at the other end to a piece of iron in the shape of a 
wrench, which must be -firmly keyed to the nut of the wheel, 
on the side where the colt is driven. 

As the colt grows older, he may be attached by traces to 
a light bar extending from the shafts, and allowed to feel 
the collar, and get accustomed to all the shake and rattle of 
road gear, of which the unbroken three-year-old is at first 
so much afraid. The youngster may be too small for any 
harness- at first, but it is easy to get up a simple and strong 
one. 

If home-made (which it may be without expense), nothing 
besides leather is so good as two small manilla ropes, side 
by side. After the little harness is completed, soak it in 
fine tar, and dry it thoroughly, and it will be almost inde- 
structible and easily washed. 

The first lesson the colt should learn is confidence in the 
master. Getting mad and saying cuss words will not give a 
colt confidence, but gentleness and a little sugar will. 

No harsh word should ever be spoken in the hearing of a 
colt. Everything should be done to teach him that man is 
his friend. His education cannot begin too early. The 



THE colt's education. 85 

longer it is postponed, the more difficult it becomes, and the 
more patience it demands. 

Care should be had when a colt is first driven not to get 
it heated, or it will become more restive, and slouch around 
in the harness, and likely enough stop, or try to lie down 
and roll. 

Never work about a colt rapidly, as if in a hurry ; it only 
makes him nervous, and this causes him to lose presence of 
mind. ^Vhipping is rarely better than coaxing and petting. 

If the colt is stubborn about taking the bit, lead it into a 
stall and put a rope with a slipping noose around its neck ; 
then put the bit into its mouth, doing the work as gently as 
possible. The colt will very likely pull back and choke 
itself. After a moment's choking relieve it and try again. 
\Yith a few such lessons the colt will hold its head down and 
give no more trouble. 

After the colt has learned to be guided by the bit, he 
should be used in various ways for a week before he is 
driven. The first lesson will be to get him accustomed to 
the harness. He should not be frightened by it, but care- 
fully taught what it is. He should smell of it, look it over 
and learn it will not harm him, during several hours if nec- 
essary. Previous to driving, the colt should be led an hour 
every day and taught to draw by the collar and whiffletree 
many things like a stick of timber, bush, stoneboat or other 
things of which he is likely to be afraid in the future. He 
should become accustomed from the first to robes, umbrellas, 
high loads, blanketed cattle, steam rollers, locomotives and 
whatever else of which he is likely to be afraid. He must 
be quietly but firmly led up to the object of his fear, being 
talked to kindly meanwhile. 

Tying. During the first two or three years of his life in 
servitude he should never be fastened by anything smaller 



86 THE colt's education. 

than a half-incli manilla rope, which should be long enough 
to permit secure tying. And he should never be fastened to 
anything he may break off or move. If he becomes afraid 
of that to which he is tied or learns he can break loose he 
will always make trouble about standing, and the horse 
which has once run away can be depended upon but little 
afterwards. 

Shying at objects is made worse by harshness. Keep a 
sharp lookout and a tight rein. Whenever the colt shies, 
stop him and let him look at the object of his fear. If the 
colt manifests great fear of the cars, do not drive him attached 
to the carriage as near as possible, and then compel him by 
harshness to stand. 

Do not hitch up a colt and give him a chance to kick. 
Don't trust him until he has gotten accustomed to everything. 
Give him the benefit of the doubt, and let him wear a sure 
anti-kicking strap that will nip in the bud any tendency in 
this damaging direction. As commonly applied, the kick- 
ing strap is a useless appendage, as many horsemen have 
found out to their sorrow. To be sure of its controlling 
power in every case, have it strapped to the crupper and kept 
at the root of the tail. If it slip up or down it is likely to 
be a menace to the driver's safety. This vice is exceedingly 
difficult for a horse to forget, and few are ever broken of it. 
A good horseman says that in training a colt disposed to 
kick up put a wooden or iron martingale on him — that is, a 
forked stick like a pitchfork ; tie the forks firmly to the bit 
rings ; put a mortise in the other end for the girth to go 
through. He cannot kick up worth a cent with that on. 

Fast Walking. A horse that can walk fast is always a 
source of pleasure, while a slow walker is an abomination. 
While much comes by inheritance, education is much to be 
credited for a good road gait. No animal so quickly forms 



THE colt's education. 8/ 

a habit as does a horse. Give him the chance to form the 
habit of fast walking. Don't tire him out on the start before 
you ask him to walk, and then expect him to walk rapidly. 
Give him a chance to show his ability at a walk when he 
comes fresh from the stable. If he feels good, so much the 
better ; keep him down to a walk for the first few miles and 
let him form the habit of walking like a tornado. The 
natural inclination will be to walk fast, at times almost break- 
ing into a trot. If this is continued day after day with care 
that the colt does not become tired, a prompt, or even very 
fast walk, will be as natural to that colt as eating. 

Time and persistent care taking are necessary to educate a 
colt into a good and pleasant roadster, but once done the 
horse will have a higher market value than any not thus 
carefully trained. What has been said of walking is true of 
other gaits. When the pupil is started faster than a walk 
let it be a good stiff gait of eight to ten miles an hour. See 
that the colt does not blunder along or move carelessly. Let 
this gait be maintained until he has changed to a walk, and, 
whether the beast walk or trot, let it be a good road gait, 
as if he had some ambition, though the top of his speed may 
not be aimed at. 

Many serious accidents would be avoided if every colt 
were taught to stop at the word. Be patient, and try to 
teach but one thing at a time, and educate him so that he 
will not be startled by things hitting him. 

What shall be done for a colt inclined to bite? Be kind 
to it ; but if it bites, chastise it on the spot. 

It is very easy to spoil a colt if he is kept tied up in a stall 
without regular exercise. Don't do it. 

The young horse not yet fully broken should have but one 
driver. A firm, quiet tone of voice and gentle manner are 
invaluable traits in a trainer, and however spirited a colt 



88 THE colt's education. 

may be, he will control himself even when badly frightened, 
when he hears the reassuring voice of his driver. 

Don't let the little colt follow his dam at work all day or 
on a long drive. The tender cartilages in his limbs are not 
able to bear constant use. He must be where he can lie 
down and be at rest two-thirds of the time. When the mare 
is taken away, first shut him up where he cannot in any way 
injure himself. A plain box-stall without undulations in the 
floor, without manger or ties of any kind is best. No young 
animal is more likely to get into mischief, and none is so 
easily damaged. 




THE colt's education. 



COLT PHILOSOPHY. 

John Tucker says : 

Is the colt uneasy becmise a botfly is abotit ? Do7i't kill 
the colt ; kill the fly. 

Above all thijtgs^ dott't train a colt in a weak harmless. 
Have everything strong and heavy, if it has to be made of 
inch rope. 

It is a poor rule that won''t work both ways. The colt 
should learn to back as pleasantly as he draws. 

Feed the joints of the colts. How ? With oats and bran. 

If the grozuing colt reaches up for its hay it will tetid to 
make it higher headed. 

No lesson of greater hjiportance can be taught the colt 
than of standing still while one is entering or leaving the 
wagon. 

Be very careful when turning out or calling up the colts 
not to get them, in the habit of being hard to catch. A horse 
that comes when called is worth more money on the farm 
than a shy catcher. Akoays treat the colts to something they 
like when they come to you, and never by a quick act scare 
them away. 



CHAPTER XI. 

THE FOOT. 

Description — The Barefooted Horse — Some Ailments of the 
Foot; How Caused and Cured. 

The foot is a delicate package covered with horn in vary- 
ing thickness and hardness, making wall, sole and frog. 
Besides containing the foot bones (coffin, navicular and part 
of the small pastern bones), it holds the sensitive laminae 
plantar cushion and the lateral cartilages. It is thus beau- 
tifully described by A. A. Holcombe, D. V. S.: 

" The sole incloses the hoof on the ground surface, hav- 
ing a V-shaped opening at the rear for the frog. It is pro- 
duced by the velvety tissue, a thin membrane covering the 
plantar cushion, and other soft tissues beneath the coffin 
bone. The horn of the sole differs from the horn of the 
wall, in that its tubes are not straight and it scales off in 
pieces. The frog is a triangular body divided by a deep 
fissure, and is attached to the sole by its borders. The horn 
of the frog is produced in the same manner as the sole, but 
it is soft, moist, elastic. It is the function of the frog to de- 
stroy shock and prevent slipping. The sensitive laminae are 
thin plates of soft tissue covering the anterior surface of the 
coffin bone. They are present in great numbers, and by 
fitting into corresponding grooves on the inner surface of the 
wall the union of the soft and horny tissue is made com- 
plete. The plantar cushion is a thick pad of fibrous tissue 
behind and under the navicular and coffin bones and resting 



THE FOOT. 91 

on the sole and frog. They receive the downward pressure 
of the column of bones and destroy shock." 

It is easy to understand from the above something of the 
delicate character of the horse's foot. 

Ordinarily the horses may be kept at work without inter- 
ruption, whether barefooted or not. There is not one per 
cent, of danger in this respect which is usually feared. If 
the barefooted horse actually becomes so tender as to limp, 
a condition of affairs which will rarely be seen except under 
the severest circumstances, the tenderness will only be tem- 
porary and in no way injure his value. If this stage should 
develop, thin, light toe-clips may be tacked on, or a piece of 
the best sole leather shaped to fit the foot and nailed to it 
the same as a shoe. ^^T^en this is worn off the foot will 
have regained its natural toughness and none of the elas- 
ticity of the frog will have been destroyed meanwhile. 
Some horses with thin soles will require this protection for a 
short time, more, however, because of stepping upon small 
stones, etc., and causing temporary change of gait, than be- 
cause the foot is worn down. Actual wearing is beneficial 
rather than otherwise, as it encourages nature to put forth an 
effort toward self-protection, which results in bigger, better 
feet, including a growth of that wonderful cushion, the frog. 
The leather shoe will require close watching, and the team- 
ster should carry pincers to remove the nails at any time they 
project in a way threatening to scratch the horse. 

Go slow about having the colt shod. If he has been al- 
lowed sufficient exercise his feet will be strong and tough, 
and you may go right on working and driving without shoes 
by standing in wet clay occasionally an hour or two. Should 
his hoofs become short and tender, have him shod with tips, 
which are very light, short, narrow shoes, only reaching 
back to where the last nail is usually driven, leaving the 



92 THE FOOT. 

heels without protection. The shoe to be countersunk into the 
hoofs until on a level with the heels, never paring the frog, 
heels or sole, and only putting in four nails, two on a side. 
Now your colt can work and travel again, the frog taking 
hold of the ground and preventing slipping. If he is re- 
quired to do heavy pulling on rough, hard, frozen and icy 
roads, we know of no better appliance than the customary 
shoe with short, sharp toes and calks. 

As soon as the necessity for the shoes is passed return to 
the tips or no shoes at all. The horse accustomed to shoes 
may have them removed when frost is gone. If hard and 
brittle stand the hoofs in water two hours at a time and 
poultice with cake meal at night. If the hoofs become too 
short have on tips and exercise or work not too hard until 
the hoofs regain their natural condition, when he will stand 
the work, unless it be much upon the turnpike or he is flat- 
footed, when we must use the old-style shoe until invention 
brings something better. Use care and judgment in restor- 
ing the feet to their natural condition, and you will be sur- 
prised to find that many horses can do good service the year 
around without shoes. 

Lift up the horse's foot and see if the rim of the shoe is 
inside of the shell of the hoof, and if it is start a boy with 
that horse to the shoesmith, or take the chances of corns on 
your horse. 

An overgrowth of hoof and a consequent hardening of 
the foot are fruitful sources of lameness. The elasticity of 
the hoof is in itself a factor preventing lameness, dividing 
up, as it does, the effects of concussion between the hoof 
and the 500 sensitive laminae that connect it to the foot 
within the hoof-box. 

Keep the feet phable by soaking them occasionally during 
the drouth of summer. A horse whose feet are too dry will 



THE FOOT. 93 

often flinch and limp on striking against or stepping upon 
an obstruction, when he would not mind it in wet weather. 
Don't oil the hoof. It does not take the place of water, and 
filling the hoof cells keeps out moisture when it comes. 
Soak in a tub, or by packing the feet with linseed meal 
mush or wet moss. If a tub is not handy, stand the horse 
on a thick blanket folded several times and soaked in water. 
Moisten the walls by a loose bandage about each fetlock, 
pouring on warm water frequently. Many of the hoof oint 
ments, moreover, are positively injurious if regularly used to 
any extent. They are generally of a character to injure the 
hoof, shutting up the pores in the horn, thus retarding or 
preventing the natural and proper circulation in the hoof and 
producing ruinous results. 

When some horses lie down they strike the back part of 
the fore leg with the calks of their shoes and bruise it. After 
awhile a callous comes on and a sore. The only way to 
prevent it is to put a thick pad around the horse when stand- 
ing in the stable, to keep the shoe from bruising the place. 
Dress the sore with any sort of liniment, and grease it till 
it is healed. 

Puncture. It is dangerous for a horse to step on a nail, as 
it is likely to result in lockjaw. Have the blacksmith cut 
out the puncture down to tender flesh, then fill the opening 
with a five per cent, solution of carbolic acid and pack with 
cotton to keep out dirt, and repeat daily, soaking the foot in 
clean w^arm water before dressing. 

Navicular Disease is indicated by a shrunken shoulder, 
and a contracted foot that is placed several inches in advance 
of the other while at rest. This is an inflammation or ulcer- 
ation of the pedal sesamoid at the point where the tendons 
play over it. The symptoms are often very obscure, accord- 
ing to the stage of the disease, and the lameness is attributed 



94 THE FOOT. 

to some difficulty in the shoulder. This, however, is a mis- 
take. It is due to the wasting of the shoulder muscles from 
disease. The cause is usually fast work on hard roads or 
pavements, causing slight inflammation, which being un- 
noticed or neglected, increases and ends in ulceration. The 
best treatment is to remove the shoe, pare down the hoof- 
wall and round the edge to prevent splitting, then fire 
deeply in points around and above the coronet, follow up 
with one or more blisters of red iodide of mercury, one part, 
lard, three parts, and when the effects pass off, turn out the 
animal to pasture for six weeks. It is always best to consult, 
in this disease, a competent veterinary surgeon. 

Corns originate in simple bruises. There is later an in- 
creased production of hoof, and the formation of a horny 
tumor which presses on the quick. If of recent formation 
apply a bar shoe and rasp down the bearing surface of the 
afflicted heel and avoid pressure. Soak the feet. A horny 
tumor must be pared to the quick and packed with tar. 
Shoe with a bar shoe and place a leather sole between it and 
the hoof. If the corn be further advanced the foot should 
be soaked in a bucket of hot water for an hour, and then 
poulticed. Any matter that has formed should be liberated, 
and if grit or dirt have got into the heel this should be 
cleaned out. Poultices should be kept upon the wound until 
it is healed and free from soreness. If the cause is so serious 
that matter has burst out at the top of the heel a veterinary 
surgeon only is competent to manage it. 

TJn^ush is a disease which shows an excessive secretion 
of unhealthy matter in the frog, and is detected by its vile 
odor. A common cause is foul stables. The cure consists 
in cleanliness and the removal of the cause. The diseased 
and ragged portions of the frog should be pared and scraped 
and the foot poulticed for a day or two with oil meal and 



THE FOOT. 95 

water, to which may be added a few drops of carbolic acid, 
or some powdered charcoal. The dressing should be changed 
daily, and, after every vestige of decayed substance is re- 
moved, the cleft of the frog and grooves on its edges should 
be cleaned and packed with oakum, held in place by leather 
nailed on with the shoe. Before packing cover the place 
wath a good coat of sulphate of zinc, pressing well in. 
Horses especially liable to thrush may need to be protected 
in the stable by the use of boots. Sometimes other diseases 
combine with thrush, making a cure seem impossible. 

To determine lameness in a horse offered for sale lead the 
animal onto a hard road and examine him from various po- 
sitions, from before and behind, and from each side, to locate 
the lameness. The head bobs to that side of the body which 
is all right. If the lameness is in the left fore leg, the head 
drops to the right. In posterior lameness the weight of the 
body drops on the sound leg. That is, when the dropping 
of the hip or nod of the head occur on the right side of the 
body at the time the feet of that side strike the ground, the 
horse is lame on the left side. If the motions are to the 
near side when these feet strike the ground, the lameness is 
on the off side. The foot is more frequently the seat of 
lameness than any other part. 

A slow trot is the best gait to determine lameness. He 
will show it more, and he should be trotted when first taken 
from the stable. Watch him coming out of the stable — 
some lamenesses are over after the first few steps. Some 
fomis of lameness are only noticeable after a hard day's work 
or a hard drive. Never buy a horse until you see how he 
stands a hard day's work. 



96 THE FOOT, 



HORSE MAXIMS. 

John Tucker says : 

The way to lift the mortgage is to hitch tzvo good breeding 
mares to it and bid them go. 

The difference betzveen a good horseshoer and a poor one : 
the one is a thinker, the other a tinker. 

A clean stable is like a clean heart. It means better 
things. 

Cast-iron rules will riot do in horse management any more 
than in the family. 

What is a horse good for without sound feet ? 

Some horsemen will lie, and about horses, too. It is mean, 
but it is so. 

It^ s poor policy to be mooning round in the barn zuith a 
lantern. 

Nobody is more fully humbugged than a farmer who 
swallows the pedigree of a viongrel stallion. 

Bragging does not make a good horse. 



CHAPTER XII. 



Proper Treatment of the Feet in Shoeing — Mistakes Pointed 
Out — Fitting the Shoe to the Foot — Contracted Feet — 
Interfering and Striking — Frequent Shoeing Necessary. 

Proper treatment of the foot is one of the principal requisites 
in the care of horses. Ignorant blacksmiths damage more 
horses than they benefit by the close 
paring of the hoof at heel and sole, 
and rasping of the walls. " Take 
care of the shuck and the middle 
will take care of itself." This 
statement, made recently by one 
of the best shoers I have ever 
known, is the terse expression of 

a great truth. It is his custom to put on the shoes cold, 
after carefully fitting them to the hoof, which is rasped level 
or pared as little as possible. He does not " clean up the 
frog," "open the heels," rasp off the walls, thin the sole, 
nor in any way disturb himself to circumvent nature's efforts 
to protect that sensitive and beautiful creation — the horse's 
foot — so wonderfully hung, adjusted and boxed. 

The horse with contracted heels ! what a bugbear he is, 
and how the average bungler loves to get hold of him and 
display his wisdom and ability (?) . Contracted feet are pro- 
duced by artificial conditions and faulty shoeing. The great 




majority of horses thus afflicted, if allowed to go bare for a 
year or more, would have the defect remedied by that 
greatest of veterinarians — nature. The time to pull off 
the shoes and be sure the hoofs will not break up at the 
edges and allow the feet to become tender, is in the spring, 
as soon as the frost begins to come out of the ground. 

Animals that have never been brought to the forge have 
feet well fitted by nature for hard usage, which are in them- 
selves proof of man's folly in blindly following gustoms. 

Where shoeing is a positive necessity, preparation of the 
hoof is of great importance. Closely observe the unshod 
foot when it comes to the ground. Every part of its surface 
sustains a portion of the weight and wear. The frog, which 
appears to recede from the level of the foot when held in 
the hand, settles down so that it also bears upon the earth. 
When we put on the shoe, the weight is seen to be sus- 
pended in the foot, especially when calks are allowed. 
The frog is merely pushed down. The sole, frequently 
pared out by the merciless smith, has no opportunity for 
usefulness, and the wall of the hoof, besides being forced 
to drag along the iron thus nailed to it, sustains upon its' 
edge the entire weight of the animal, besides bearing the 
friction within. 

When shoeing the colt for the first time, no preparation is 
required for a shoe further than slightly leveling with the 
rasp the ground surface of the wall. Horses constantly 
shod will be found to have a crust of horn near the toe. 
Wear at that point is prevented by the immovable shoe, which, 
at the heels, always has slight play, because not nailed, and 
the growth is retarded or worn down. The fact that an 
iron casing does not permit a normal wearing of the 
foot's surface, forces the horse to submit to this damaging 
condition of affairs, unless he is handled at all times 



SHOEING. 99 

with intelligence. For when the foot has got out of the 
proper level, a serious danger is imminent. Increase of 
horn at the toe throws the pastern into an oblique posi- 
tion, and undue weight upon the tendons and ligaments at 
the back of the foot strains them. 

Heels that are too high throw improper violence upon the 
bones and joints of the extremities, much as would be the 
case in man were he forced to wear a high-heeled boot a 
little too short at the toe. But little danger of this kind may 
be anticipated in the barefooted horse. 

The inexperienced horse owner forced to submit to the 
work of an incompetent farrier may secure sufficient accuracy 
of level by insisting that the surface of the wall or outer 
crust of horn be brought to a level with the firm, unpared 
sole. The sole requires no reduction whatever, and owners 
of horses who permit it to be gouged and carved are sub- 
mitting themselves as well as. their property to an injury 
which, in some cases, will be forever without remedy. 
Nature provides in her own way for any excess of growth of 
frog and sole. Those who thin the sole with the avowed 
purpose of giving it greater elasticity, overlook the fact that 
they are removing its natural defense against injury and dis- 
ease, a defense which no substitute can make good. 

Having been prepared, preparation of the shoe is next in 
order, and it should be made to conform to the foot. Who- 
ever is not sufficient master of the hammer to fit the iron to the 
foot instead of burning the foot into the shape of the iron, 
should not be permitted to handle horses' feet. The best of 
nails should be used, and three nails well set on a side are 
usually as good as four. The use of thin plates during eight 
or ten months of the year is preferable to thick shoes with 
heavy calks, except upon the feet of horses forced to travel 
slippery pavements and haul great loads. 



Another fault is fitting the foot to the shoe, frequently 
using a shoe that is too small and rasping down the foot to fit 
it. This is a diabolical practice, fatal to the last degree to 
the life of the foot. The rasp should have no place in a 
farrier's kit, unless it be for leveling the walls. The weight 
of the horse should be borne upon the walls, whose edges 
should rest upon the shoe. If these walls be rasped away, 
and the weight thrown upon the sole, and the outer covering 
of the foot destroyed so it will dry up and soon become in- 
capable of holding the nails, what can be expected of the foot? 

An excellent plan for helping horses with contracted feet 
is followed by a New England farrier with most beneficial 
results. It is to level the upper surface of the shoe at the 
heel before attaching it to the foot, the inner circle to be one- 
sixteenth to one-fourth of an inch higher than the outer 
circle. It will be seen that the walls of the foot rest thus 
upon a surface which tends to spread them constantly. As 
a result of this continued relaxed condition at the heel, the 
frog is encouraged to grow, the bars to develop, and in a 
few months the heel is seen to be changing its condition 
materially. His unalterable rule is, "Never use the knife 
to open the heel." 

Horses compelled to wear shoes should have them reset 
as often as every three to four weeks, not alone for the com- 
fort of the horse, but that his feet and general constitution 
may remain uninjured. Insist upon small nails being used, 
and as few of these as possible. The holes for the nails 
should not be made too near the edge of the shoe. If 
punched further from the edge they take thicker and lower 
hold of the walls of the hoof, and do not need to be driven 
so high as to approach the sensitive part of the foot. With 
a perfectly level bearing, three nails on either side will hold 
the shoe firmly. With uneven fitting, however, the shoe 



soon works loose. When the shoe has been fitted and the 
nails clinched, insist that rasping, painting or oiling the foot 
to improve its appearance or make a neat job be left un- 
done. In its natural state the entire hoof is kept covered by a 
secretion which cannot be improved upon by man, and which 
preserves the moisture of the foot. To destroy this by mixing 
with it some foreign compound, or to cut off the minute tubes 
which constitute the shell of the foot, is the worst of folly. 

Interfering may be prevented at times by proper shoeing. 
The outside of the heel and quarter of the foot on the in- 
jured leg should be lowered slightly to change the relative 
position of the fetlock joint, thus carrying it in such a posi- 
tion that its mate may pass without striking it. A very 
slight change will produce this result frequently. The 
offending foot should be shod so that the shoe, and especially 
the responsible point, is well under the hoof, and the shoe 
should be reset every three or four weeks. Frequent wet- 
ting of the injured parts with cold water or salt and water 
will remove the soreness and swelling unless the part is 
badly calloused. A Spanish fly blister may then be neces- 
sary to reduce the leg to its natural condition, and may need 
to be repeated in two or three weeks. 

When a horse is in the habit of forging or striking his 
hind feet against his fore ones, careful attention should be 
given to the shoeing. It is due to quick action behind and 
slow action in front. Shorten the toes of the fore feet and 
put ,on light, nicely fitted and turned up shoes. Do the 
same with the hind feet, but put on shoes somewhat heavier 
than the fore ones. By this arrangement the horse will pick 
up his fore feet quicker and the hind feet slower, thus ac- 
complishing just what is wanted.. If a quarter of a second 
of time is thereby gained the fore foot will be clear out of 
the way of the hind foot. 



I03 




MAXIMS. 



Most horses luhen tethered by a rope will injure them- 
selves by sazving the rope against the groove above the hoof 
behind. To remedy this trouble^ tie in a piece four feet 
long of stont canvas, making a soft roll in place of the 
rope. 

If you spoil your colt — what about the horse ? 

If you caress your horse itzuill make it feel as Jiappy as a 
woman experiencing the same sensation. 

You do not gain the confidence of yotir horse by whipping 
him. Alore fiesh can be whipped off a horse in one day than 
can be fed on in a week. 

Rear your own horses. It zuill not pay to sell farm prod- 
ucts at a cent a pound, and pay for horses with this money 
at fifteen or twenty cents a pound. 



I04 MAXIMS. 

The scrub horse has a mission. lie is needed by men zuho 
think it is necessary to jerk on the lines every time they ivanf 
to turn, and hick the horse 7uhen they ivant him to sta7id 
over. 

Unsoundness and carelessness are twins. 
■ Animals are such agreeable friends — they ask no ques- 
iions, pass no criticisms. 

Morally, the horse is better than any human being that 
ever lived. 

Screens at t/te stable doors and 7vindows save bushels of 
feed. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

A WORD FROM HARRIET. 

Making the Horse Happy — A Cheerful Animal the Most 
Useful — Importance of Gentleness — The Horse's Good 
Qualities Pointed Out — The Docked Horse. 

Of food and drink give me the best. 
From brtctal treatment keep me free ; 

Give me when tired a little rest. 
And see how useftil I can be. 

People ought to try to make their horses happy. A happy, 
cheerful horse will do more work and live longer, and thus 
be more profitable to its owner, than one whose temper is 
kept constantly ruffled, whose 
disposition is soured by ill- 
usage, and whose peace of 
mind is often disturbed by the 
crack of the whip, the hoarse 
voice of the driver, the strain 
of overwork, the discomfort 
of a hard bed, or the pangs of 
hunger and thirst. If one 
would have a good, willing 
and useful horse, let him treat 
him so that he will be cheerful and happy. 

There are many ways by which this result can be brought 
about. Gentle treatment is, of course, one of the most 




Io6 A WORD FROM HARRIET. 

effective. Never strike a horse in anger; never growl at 
him, never jerk the bridle nor lines, so as to hurt his mouth; 
never whip him, at least never severely whip him, and be 
sure that you do not keep him in constant terror or expectancy 
of a blow from the whip. How can a horse px)ssess a cheer- 
ful mind if he be always on the lookout for a cut across the 
back, over the sides or around the legs ! Indeed, he will 
waste a vast amount of energy and nervous force every day 
if kept in a state of suspense, occasioned by a free and reck- 
less use of the lash. If any one doubts it, let him try such 
treatment upon himself. 

A horse ought to be talked to a good deal. He under- 
stands what is said to him very well. An intelligent horse 
knows more than a stupid, uncultured 
man. He is a good deal better company. 
He is cleaner, as a rule, and gives no 
countenance to vulgarity or profanity. He 
is more self-respecting. He is less given 
to bad habits. He could not be induced 
to chew nor smoke tobacco nor drink beer. 
^ ■ Whatever he does he does frankly, with a 
clear conscience ; yet how often his master, who rates him- 
self his superior, will violate his conscience and do things 
he knows are wrong. 

A horse is moderate in the indulgence of his appetites. 
When he gets enough to drink he stops drinking ; when he 
eats enough he quits eating. He is not a glutton. He is not 
quarrelsome unless made so by bad usage. He harbors no 
animosity. He is at peace with all the world. He is gentle; 
he is forgiving; he is faithful when other friends fail. He is 
contented ; the vain ambitions of the world, its discontent 
and its strivings after the forbidden or the unattainable, are 
never his. Therefore, though often rated by the unthinking 




A WORD FROM HARRIET. I07 

as inferior to naan, yet he is in many respects vastly superior 
to the cross-grained, profane, brutal, vulgar and ignorant 
men into whose ownership he oftentimes falls. 

The stalls should be cleaned out every morning (and even- 
ing also if occupied through the day), and a nice, soft, clean, 
bed made for the animal to rest upon. Many horses are in- 
jured in their feet and legs by having to stand upon a great 
pile of manure, from which the ammonia arises, for weeks 
and months. The ammonia is also injurious to the eyes, to 
say nothing of the harness. 

No colt will acquire bad habits of any kind if brought up 
right. If a fault be discovered, as it should be, in the be- 
ginning, it can easily be corrected. Overlooked and allowed 
to run on for a time, it is then hard to eradicate. The owner 
of a balky horse, for instance, has only himself to blame. 
Gentle treatment, kind words, an apple, a wisp of hay and 
a little patience, will move any but an old and confirmed 
balker. Those who happen to own one of the latter will 
often find a small bottle of ether effective in changing the 
current of the horse's mind and inducing him to draw the 
load. Only in rare cases has it ever failed. 

The women folks should become interested in the welfare 
of the horse. Go often to the stable and talk to them and 
pet them. Pat them on the nose, give them the apple skins, 
and occasionally a fair, sound apple or potato. They will 
soon become acquainted with you and learn to listen for your 
footsteps and to love you. Possibly they may develop as 
much real affection towards you as you can find elsewhere 
about the premises ; if so this is a clear gain. If you have 
courage go into the stall with them ; curry them, bridle or 
harness them when necessary ; teach them to serve you, 
which, if you are kind to them, they will be glad 
to do. 



lo8 A WORD FROM HARRIET. 

He was a beautiful horse in his youth. His long tail 
added much to his beauty, and was a sure defense against 
tormenting flies. A rich man in the city bought him to 
match another horse, and the two were attached to the 
family carriage. 

The tail was cut off, because, strangely enough, the bob- 
tail, cut square, was more pleasing to the owner than the 
tail given by nature. That was the reason why the tail was 
docked, but the owner excused the docking by saying that 
the horse would hold the rein under the tail and thus im- 
peril the lives of those who rode. 

The horse did not at first miss his tail brush, for he was a 
rich man's horse and wore a net in summer; he was care- 
fully groomed and kept in good condition. But occasionally 
his owner drove the horse to his box buggy, and, as he was 
a hard driver, he was overdriven, spoiled, and of course sold. 

The horse then came into the possession of a grocer who 
had some compassion and provided a net to keep off the 
flies. But at length the horse becomes too slow for the 
grocer, and then began the downward road that ends always 
in misery and torture. 

Last summer this horse was seen attached to a fruit 
hawker's dilapidated wagon. It was a hot day, and the 
horse was standing in front of a fruit store while the owner 
was within buying his stock in trade. A more pitiable horse- 
sight was never seen. The flies swarmed around him and 
drove him nearly frantic; he twisted, kicked, turned and 
bit himself till the blood had started. There was a fresh 
bruise on one hip on which the flies settled, the short hair 
of the tail was not long enough to reach this, and he was 
robbed of all defense. 

The horse was little more than skin and bone, but he may 
have had food enough. His condition might be due to this 



A WORD FROM HARRIET. IO9 

continual worry and fighting of flies. If the man who 
caused the tail to be docked could have seen the horse in 
his present condition he would have regretted the part he 
took in it, if he had any feeling of compassion. Let every 
man remember who cuts off a horse's tail, cuts off not only 
the hair, but also the stump of the tail, that another stump 
will not grow in its place, and that the horse will be prac- 
tically tailless the rest of his life. Horses were given tails 
because they need them, and it ought to be a crime, punish- 
able by law, to mutilate a horse at the command of a soul- 
less god-fashion. 



A WORD FROM HARRIET. 



COLT PHILOSOPHY. 

Harriet Biggle says : 

A poor halter will often spoil a colt. 
The time to train a colt is all along. 

Give the young horses sunshine. They need it as much as 
they do pure air and exercise. 

Make the little foal gentle ; sugar will do it, and kind 
words. 

The teased colt often makes the vicious horse. 

Teach the colt 07ie thing at a time. When he has learned 
something don't let him forget it. Afake him go over it 
again and again. In days following repeat it. 

Make friends right off zvith the colts. Have some apples 
or something in your pocket for them, and they will soon 
conie to feel that you are a friend. A horse loves a friend 
and hates an enemy. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

AGE OF A HORSE. 

How to Tell the Age of a Horse by His Teeth — The Age in 
Verse. 

A horse's age is determined accurately only by referring 
to his teeth. Authorities differ somewhat as to the exact 




condition of the teeth at a stated age, and indeed all horses 
have not teeth of identical size and shape at a similar age. 



112 AGE OF A HORSE. 

But all agree that as the teeth come in, and later, as they 
wear down, definite appearances are presented, furnishing 
data that is fairly reliable for denoting the age of horses 
between birth and twelve years old, and less distinct proof 
for every added year. The accompanying jingles will prove 
a fair guide if carefully read and followed. The following, 
gleaned from the best authorities, is plainer, however, and 
carries the age table beyond the usual limit set, twelve years : 
Soon after birth two central nippers show. When a year 
old the colt has cut his twelve front teeth and sixteen 
grinders. When two years old, the mark on the grinding 
surface of the nippers (the two central teeth in the set of 
six) , is much worn out and is hardly perceptible ; it is not so 
faint in the middle teeth (teeth next the nippers), and the 
corner teeth are flat and show the mark clearly. During 
the third year the second set of teeth begins to show. Be- 
tween three and three and one-half years the "baby" teeth 
or first nippers fall out and are replaced by permanent ones, 
giving the basis for after judgment as to the animal's age. 
The teeth are continually worn away, the length is decreas- 
ing, sometimes regularly and sometimes not, so that in old 
age the tooth once two and one-half to three inches long is 
scarcely half an inch long, unless the teeth slant forward too 
much, when they fail to get the wear which should occur, 
and they become very long. At four years the nippers be- 
gin to lose their sharp edge and have grown noticeably, the 
adjoining or "middle " teeth have also grown, but not fully, 
and are still sharp, with the deep mark plain. The corner 
teeth remain until the age is four and one-half years. After 
five years the age is learned by the shape and appearance of 
the teeth. 

Now, the lower jaw shows nippers worn so the marking in 
the center is almost obliterated, middle teeth with the outer 



AGE OF A HORSE. II3 

edge only worn, and comer teeth grown to an even height, 
but not worn much, and hooks grown, but not worn. At 
six, the nippers on the lower jaw are worn even and the 
middle teeth have still a cavity. At seven, the same jaw 
shows that the middle teeth have become even, and both 
edges of comer teeth rub, but still retain a slight cavity. 
At eight, a mere trace of the mark is visible in the lower 
corner teeth. At nine, the upper nippers have almost lost 
their mark, the middle ones show a faint mark, and the 
corner teeth have a deeper mark than the middle ones. At 
nine, also, the upper corner teeth begin to show a curve in 
the surface. This curve gradually deepens as age increases. 
At ten, the mark in the middle upper teeth has changed 
from oblong to nearly circular, and at eleven, the same 
change is noticed in the comer teeth. At twelve, the lower 
nippers have become nearly round, while they were broad 
in youth ; the middle teeth become so at thirteen, and the 
corner ones at fourteen. At fifteen, the upper nippers are 
rounded ; the middle teeth follow suit at sixteen, and the 
corner teeth at seventeen. When eighteen, the lower nip- 
pers appear three-cornered ; at nineteen, the middle ones, 
and at twenty, the corner teeth get into style. At twenty- 
one, the upper nippers get the three-corner shape ; at 
twenty-two, the middle, and at twenty-three the corner 
teeth do likewise. If the teeth project unnaturally, and are 
very long, it is more difficult to judge of the age, as they 
have not worn down as they grew out, hence the markings 
deceive. Such horses may be suspected, also, of not 
properly masticating their food. This is a great defect, in- 
asmuch as the same amount of food will do them less good, 
and encourages physical defects of serious nature, as time 
elapses. Old horses and those with weak powers of assimi- 
lation are expensive property. This is a fault chargeable to 



114 AGE OF A HORSE. 

young and immature horses (horses less than five years old), 
and it renders them unfit for hard driving or vs^ork of pro- 
tracted and severe character. 



AGE OF A HORSE. I15 



THE AGE IX VERSE. 

Two middle " nippers " you behold 
Before the colt is two weeks old ; 
Before eight weeks tzvo more zvill come ; 
Eight months, the " corners " ctit the gw, 

The outside grooves will disappear 
From middle two in just one year ; 
In two years, fro7?i the second pair ; 
In three, the corners, too, are bare. 

At two, the middle " nippers " drop ; 
At three, the second pair can't stop ; 
When four years old the third pair goes 
At five, a full new set he shows. 

The deep black spots will pass from view. 
At six years, from the middle tzvo ; 

The second pair at seven years ; 

At eight, the spot each ^'corner'" clears. 

Front middle ^^ nippers,'' tipper jazv. 
At nine the black spots will zvithdraw ; 
The second pair at tett are white ; 
Elevett finds the ' ' coi-ners ' ' light. 

As time goes on the horsemen know 
The oval teeth three-sided grow ; 
They longer get, p-roject before 
Till tzventy, whe?t zve know no more. 



CHAPTER XV. 

SOME GOOD BOOKS FOR HORSEMEN. 

To those who have an ardent love for the horse and wish 
to be better posted about him, and about his maladies and 
the remedies therefor, we would call attention to numerous 
books that have been written on the subject, and say that we 
will be pleased to supply any one mentioned below by mail 
at the publisher's price. We only name those of decided 
merit, such as may well be found in the library of every 
good horseman : 

The Farmers' Veterinary Adviser : A Guide to the 
Prevention and Treatment of Diseases in Domestic 
Animals. Illustrated. By James Law. Price, ^3.00. 

The Family Horse : Its Stabling, Care and Feed- 
ing. By George A. Martin. Published by Orange Judd 
Co. Price, $1.00. 

Sanders' Horse Breeding. By J. H. Sanders. Price, 
$2.00. 

On the Lameness of the Horse. By A. Liautard, 
M. D., V. S. Illustrated. Price, $2.50. 

The Horse's Foot and Its Diseases. By A. Zundel. 
Translated by Dr. A. Liautard. Illustrated. Price, ^2.00. 

McClure's American Gentlemen's Stable Guide. 
Price, ^i.oo. 



some good books for horsemen. ii7 

The Horse : Its Varieties and Management in 
Health and Disease. By George Armatage, V. S. Pub- 
lished by Frederick Wame & Co. An excellent work. 
Price, ;^i.oo. 

The Exterior of the Horse. By Goubaux and Bar- 
rier. Translated by Simon J. J. Harger, V. M. D. Pub- 
lished by J. B. Lippincott Co., with nearly 400 illustra- 
tions. A superb work. Price, ^6.00. 

Special Report on Diseases of the Horse. Issued by 
the Department of Agriculture, 1890. A very valuable 
work which every farmer should have. While the supply 
lasts it is sent out free and may be obtained probably through 
your Congressman or Senator. 




READY FOR A RIDE. 



INDEX. 



Acknowledgment, 6. 
Age in Verse, The, 115. 
Age of a Horse, How to 

Tell, Illus., III. 
Ailments and Remedies, 58. 
Balky Horse, The, 50. 
Barn Tank, The, 36. 
Batch of Strong Pullers, A, 

Illus., 7. 
Belgian Breed, 22. 
Biggie, Harriet, 14,57, no- 
Blanket Shield, Ilhis., 52. 
Books for Horsemen, 116. 
Breeding Farm Horses, 76. 
Capped Hocks, 67. 
Choking, 64. 
Choking Distemper, 61. 
Cleveland Bay, The, 15. 
Cleveland Bay Filly, Illus., 

16. 
Clydesdale, Illus., 24. 
Colic, 60. 
Colts, 75, 79. 
Colt's Education, The, ^1. 
Colt Philosophy, 89, no. 
Condition Powders, 72. 
Corns, 94, 



Different Breeds, The, 15. 
Digestive Apparatus, Charty. 

30- 
Distemper, 59, 61. 
Docking Horses, 109. 
Doctoring, 70. 
Draught Horse, The, 22. 
Draught Horse, Head of,. 

Illus., 23. 
Driving the Colt, Illus., 83.. 
Dysentery, 62. 
English Plowing Scene, 

Illus., 8. 
Exterior of the Horse, Chart,. 

12. 

Farm Journal, 5. 
Fast Walking, 86. 
Feeding and Watering, 31. 
Feeding Trough, Illus., 38.. 
Fits, 64. 
Foot, The, 90. 
French Coach ers, The, 17. 
French Coach Gemare, 

Illus., 19. 
Friend of the Boys and 

Girls, A, Illus., 28. 
Giddiness, 64. 



Good Books for Horsemen, 

ii6. 
Gorged Stomach, 63. 
Grooming, 42. 
Hackney, The, Illus., 22. 
Hackney Horse, The, 21. 
Halters for Pullers, Illus., 

53- 
Halters and Harness, 53. 
Harness Closet, 56. 
Harness Hints, 53. 
Harriet, A Word from, 105. 
Hay Chute, Illus., 39. 
Heaves, 62. 

History of the Horse, 11. 
Hoof Cleaner, Illus., 44. 
Hooks, 65. 

Horse at Work, Illus., 47. 
Horse Maxims, 13, 49, 96, 

103. 
Horse Tie, Illus., 54. 
Indigestion, 60. 
Injections, 71. 
Interfering, 102. 
In the Stable and at Work, 

40. 
Invocation, 6. 
Itching, 67. 
Kicking, 51, 86. 
Killing a Horse, Illus., 73. 
Knuckling, 66. 
Lampas, 65. 



Leading Horses, Illus., 55. 

Lice, 65. 

Lockjaw, 64. 

Manure Wheelbarrow, 

Illus., 42. 
Mare and Colt, 75. 
Mare Maxims, 74. 
Maxims, 13, 49, 96, 103. • 
Megrims, 64. 
Morgan Horse, The, 20. 
Mule, The Good, 25. 
Navicular Disease, 93. 
Norman Breed, 22. 
Our Tom, Illus., loi. 
Overexertion, 68. 
Overloaded Team, Illus., 47. 
Paddock, Illus., 78. 
Parts of the Horse, Chart, 

12. 
Percheron Breed, 22. 
Poultices, 72. 
Puncture of the Hoof, 93. 
Reference Chart, Illus., 12. 
Remedies, 58, 70. 
Ring Bone, 66, 
Road Halter, Illus., 54. 
Running Away, 52. 
Sage, Hollister, 6. 
Salting, 34. 

Scraper, Illus., 41, 44. 
Scratches, 59, 66. 
Shetland Pony, The, 27. 
Shoeing, 97. 



Sore Shoulders, 6i. 
Spasmodic Colic, 60. 
Spavin, 66. 
Splint, 66. 

Sprained Fetlock, 66. 
Stable Floors, 40. 
Stable Halter, Ilhts.^ 54. 
Stables, 40. 
Staggers, 64. 
Stall Tie, Ilhis., 46. 
Stallion Paddock, 78. 
Stripg Halt, 67. 
Suffolk Breed, 22. 
Syringe, Ilhis., 71. 
Tail Rubbing, 50. 
Three Horses Abreast, ///«/^., 
56. 



Thrush, 94. 

Tim's Team, Illus.^ 26. 

Treatment of Colts, 72. 

Troughs, Illus., 37. 

Tucker, John, 13, 74, 89, 96. 

Tying the Colt, 85. 

Unhappy Horse, II Ins., 106. 

Vices, 50. 

Watering, 31. 

Watering Troughs, 37. 

Wind Colic, 60. 

Wind Galls, 67. 

Whims and Vices, 50: 

Worms, 59. 

Yorkshire Bay, The, 17. 



Biggie Farm Library 

TEN VOLUMES 

No. I. BIOQLE HORSE BOOK 

NOW out 

No. 2. BIQQLE BERRY BOOK 

OUT IN OCTOBER 



PRICE OF EACH, BY MAIL, SO CENTS 
OF BOTH, $1.00 



To be followed at intervals by 



Biggie Orchard Book 
Biggie Garden Book 
Biggie Peach Book 
Biggie Market Book 



Biggie Sheep Book 
Biggie Poultry Book 
Biggie Swine Book 
Biggie Dairy Book 



These books will be found sensible, concise and practi- 
cal, after the way of the Farm Journal itself. 

They will be sold in cloth at the uniform price of Fifty 
Cents, by mail, and enough w^ill be printed to supply every 
farmer in America with the entire libiciry. 

WiLMER Atkinson Company 

Publishers 
WILMER ATKINSON ^, ., 

CHARLES F. JENKINS Philadelphia, Penna. 



Out October, 1894 

Biggie Berry Book^ 

Being No. 2 of the Biggie Farm Library 

All about Berries; choke full of the latest 
and most practical and interesting things on 
the subject; profusely illustrated in half tone 
and with over sixty original colored prints of 
the new and standard old varieties of straw- 
berries, raspberries, gooseberries, etc., and 
practical pointers from the pens of scores of 
berry experts in all parts of the United States, 
together with portraits of leading growers. 
A remarkable book that every berry lover 
must have or take a back seat. 

A whole encyclopedia of berry lore boiled 
down after the manner of the Farm Journal — 
short and sweet. Send for it, to be sure. 



Price by Mail, 50 Cents 



WiLMER Atkinson Company 

wiimer Atkinson Philadelphia, Peona. 

Charles F. Jenkins 



Farm Journal 



Established 1877 

The Farm Journal, now in its seven- 
teenth year, has the largest circulation of any 
monthly farm paper. Its departments — The 
Poultry Yard, Dairy and Stock, The Farm, The 
Busy Bee, Our Young Folks, The Orchard, 
The Garden, The Household, Organization and 
others — cover the whole range of farm life and 
work. 

It is our constant endeavor to treat all 
topics in season ; to be concise and to the 
point ; to be practical rather than theoretical, 
and to exclude long-winded discussions and 
fme-spun theories of fancy farmers. 

The Editor was born on a farm and reared 
at the plow handles, and our contributors are 
mostly practical men and women, who write 
with their sleeves rolled up, and who briefly 
and plainly tell the best and most profitable 
way of doing things on the Farm and in the 
House, as learned from actual experience. 

It is through strict adherence to this plan, 
in every department, that we are enabled to 
to present much useful and acceptable infor- 
mation to our readers. 

Subscription Price, 50 cts. a year 

WILriER ATKINSON COflPANY 

Wilmer Atkinson PUBLISHERS 

Charles F. Jenkins PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



K.-^:S^^^Z^: 



i:^ 



UBRARY OF CONGRESS 



002 852 846 2 



